MSG
by parmakai66
Summary: The hampton's summer season is over and Hank has come to the realization that JANK was truly a MSG. So when a client makes HankMed a proposal that they can't refuse, suddenly MSG takes on a whole new meaning
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Royal Pains belongs to USA network. SG-A belongs to SciFi and both are property of some production company I don't know the name of. No infringement intended.

SGA & Royal Pains Crossover.

Summary: The season is over and Hank has come to the realization that he truly was Jill Casey's "summer guy". Then a client makes HankMed a proposal that none of the three can refuse and suddenly MSG takes on a whole new meaning.

A/N: I started writing this before the finale, so none of those events count or take place.

MSG 1:

Hank paced around the kitchen table and stared blindly at the room. All the training he had for his craft could do nothing to help the patient in front of him. The sobs from the female nearly broke his heart. The emotions were running hot, but he was helpless to comfort her. He stopped at an empty chair and sat down next to her, running his hand comfortingly across her arm.

"Divya, I'll think of something," he said trying to be as supportive as possible.

"Hank, there's nothing you can do," she moaned dabbing her eyes with a tissue. "My engagement party is in three days. Three days and my parents are expecting me to just stop doing the thing that I love to move to…to London."

Hank shook his head and leaned back into the chair with a sigh of defeat. It was pointless to ask her to tell her parents the truth about her goals. Based on what she had told the Lawson brothers and their own experiences it was clear that the Katdara's were old fashioned. _An arranged marriage in 2009? _Hank rolled his eyes. Short of Divya going into the witness protection program, he didn't see any way to get her out of a marriage that she didn't want any part of. Before he could say another thing, his cell phone rang. The caller ID told him it was Evan.

"Hey," Hank answered standing up from the table.

"Henry, remember that general dude you worked on at the Hampton country club two weeks ago?"

"Yes."

"Well, I just ran into him at the pier and he wanted to know if you could come over here and meet him for coffee," Evan said.

It was clear by the tone in Evan's voice that he was leaving something out, Hank knew his brother all too well. But unless it was a medical emergency, Hank's priority was Divya at this moment. "Why?"

"Ah, he ah …. wants to talk to you," Evan said quickly. "He's down here with another guy packing some heat," Evan added whispering heavily into the phone.

"What?" Hank questioned when he heard Evan mumbling.

"So you'll be on your way in fifteen, twenty minutes then?" Evan said avoiding the question.

"Sure Ev," Hank assured him glancing back at Divya. "I'll see you there." He ended the call and dropped the phone back in his pocket. "Div I gotta go," he said walking back to her side.

"I know," she said looking up at him with puffy red eyes. "And I know you will do your best to help me with my problem. Thank you Hank."

…**~…**

An hour later, Hank's head was spinning with details of an expedition needing a MacGyver-like doctor for a convenient nine month commitment. The words military and mission were all flooding his mind. Evan sat wordless at the table, completely stunned with the offer that was laid out in front of them. On one hand Hank was suspicious and on the other he saw the answer to Divya's situation. No matter how he diced it, he wasn't exactly comfortable with the terms. Hank sized the two men up carefully as he considered his options.

He had treated General Jack O'Neil a few weeks ago after a small fender bender via golf cart occurred at the country club. The other man at the table had been introduced as Colonel Cameron Mitchell. Both were spewing data about what they needed like fast talking used car salesmen. _They could probably sell swamp land to a priest, _Hank thought before he said anything aloud.

"I'm flattered by the offer General," Hank finally said. "But we have a business…."

"You can put on doctor on retainer while you're gone," Mitchell fired back like he wasn't going to take no for an answer. "Your brother can continue to run the business while you are away."

"We kind of have a good thing going here and I'm not so sure that we're ready to leave." Hank replied shaking his head.

"Let's talk about that Hank," O'Neil said leaning into the table. "This offer is _just _what you're looking for in more ways than one. Your current living arrangements? That Boris chump is on about ten international watch-lists for funding terrorist fronts. You just got dumped by your summer fling and your PA is about to be the bride in an arranged marriage with a guy she hasn't seen since she was ten. The way I see it, this expedition and you were meant to be."

The words sliced him like a knife. _How the hell could he know all of that? _Hank wondered glancing at Evan. _Did Evan spill the beans? Is Boris funding terrorists? _Holding his best poker face, Hank stared back at the general. "Can I have a moment to talk to my brother?" Hank asked. He watched the general nod and stood up, pulling Evan along with him.

"What did you tell him?" Hank questioned Evan as soon as they were out of earshot.

"Nothing, I swear," Evan spurted out. He held his hand up. "Scouts honor."

"Then how does he know all that about us … Divya, you, me…"

"And the Jank," Evan muttered. He quickly changed his tune when he realized Hank was hesitant. "But, dude… this is the answer to Divya's problem," Evan added shrugging his shoulder.

"I don't like it," Hank said shoving his hands in his pocket.

"I don't like it either. You think I want to be left in the Hamptons all winter while you and Divya are off in some tropical paradise cataloging bugs and worms? Not to mention who are we going to get to work on retainer?" Evan rambled on while Hank was deep in thought. "And what's going to happen to me if Boris comes back? He's on a terrorist watch list? He'll probably feed me to the shark."

"I highly doubt if he's really on a watch list," Hank countered resting his hands on his hips. "General O'Neil was golfing with Boris at the country club when I treated him."

'"Don't you know that old saying … keep your friends close, your enemies closer?" Evan replied. "The guy is one big huge secret. Need I remind you that he threatened to off me about that fish swimming in his basement?"

Hank stared out at the bay and let it all sink in. Boris _was_ keeping secrets and he did threaten Evan and for all he knew, the guy probably was on a watch list for something, although he hardly thought it was for funding terrorist interests. Divya was in a bind and this was certainly an answer to that. Jill was back with her husband. And Evan …. Evan could probably handle himself here all winter…. Maybe. He walked back to the table where O'Neil and Mitchell were waiting.

"I'll agree to this with a couple of conditions," Hank said holding his index finger in the air.

"Why does everyone always have to have conditions?" Jack asked Colonel Mitchell. He watched Cameron shrug his shoulder and chuckle. O'Neil rolled his eyes and looked back at Hank. "Let's hear it."

"There's this law suit hanging..."

"Done," O'Neil interrupted. "What else?"

"My brother goes with me."

General O'Neil held Hank's gaze for a moment and then glanced toward Evan standing a few feet away. "The accountant?" he muttered watching Evan try to act like he wasn't eavesdropping. "We got any jobs for an accountant on the expedition?" O'Neil asked Mitchell.

"He could count, balance the books, take inventory," Cam replied tilting his head in thought. "Or just really really annoy the hell out of McKay."

"Perfect," O'Neil replied with a sly smile. "That can be arranged."

"Great," Hank said dropping his hands to his side. "Then I guess we'll go."

"Okay. You have forty eight hours to make your arrangements," O'Neil said standing up from the table. He handed a business card to Hank. "Call this number if you need any assistance. The project name is Atlantis. We'll be in touch about your transportation arrangements."

"Forty-eight hours? I'm not sure if we can wrap it up that quickly," Hank remarked with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Welcome to the military Dr. Lawson," Colonel Mitchell chuckled walking away from the table.

…**~…**

"It's amazing what a person can do with forty eight hours when they put their mind to it," Hank commented as he watched Evan park his car in the garage on Ms. Newburg's property.

"Yeah, when you get out the whip," Evan grumbled taking one last look at the car. "Where's Divya?"

"She's dropping the truck off at Dr. Welby's," Hank said walking down the driveway. He shoved his hands in his pockets and reflected on the whirlwind tour he had taken since General O'Neil put the offer on the table.

Everything fell into place quickly with Divya and Ms. Newburg's help. HankMed contracted with a retired area doctor to continue care for the existing clientele. Evan arranged for billing to go through a third party administrator. Ms. Newburg allowed Evan and Hank to put their vehicles in storage in one of her six garages. The final two items, Divya and Boris were resolved almost as easily… in fact too easily.

When Hank informed Boris he was moving out temporarily, the older man just smiled. After a few minutes of prodding, Hank discovered that General O'Neil and Boris were old friends and he recommended Hank for the expedition. The _watch list _comment was just persuasive bull O'Neil spewed to convince Hank to sign up. Hank was with Divya when she told Raj that she was leaving on the expedition. Raj agreed with Divya that the engagement was a mistake and then dropped his own bombshell by telling her he was gay. Needless to say, the engagement was dissolved without further comment from Divya's or Raj's family.

"Hello? Henry are you listening to me? Of course you're not," Evan called to him waving his hand in front of Hank's face.

"What?" Hank questioned his brother as they neared the waiting cab to take them back to Boris' mansion.

"How is Divya getting back to the house?"

"Raj is dropping her off," Hank replied opening the door. "Are you all packed?"

"Yeah, I have my two approved bags packed appropriately," Evan replied with an annoyed tone. "The way that checklist was designed, I feel like we're heading off to summer camp."

"It's the military Ev," Hank replied. "Get used to it."

The cab dropped them off at the house fifteen minutes later. Divya was already on the terrace with her bags. Hank was coming down the stairs with his when his cell phone rang.

"Hank, General O'Neil," the hearty voice greeted him over the line. "I take it that everyone is ready?" he asked, although it wasn't really a question.

"Yeah," Hank grunted walking into the living room. "Divya, Evan and I are all here, ready to go."

"Okay then," O'Neil had barely responded when the three and their bags were transported to a conference room on the Daedulas. "Welcome aboard," O'Neil greeted them as the three eyeballed their change in location. "Oh, that pins and needles sensation will go away in a moment. You remember Colonel Mitchell? This is Colonel Caldwell, commander of the Daedulas. He'll be taking you to your final destination."

Evan was the first to speak. After he turned around with a stunned expression glued to his face he realized he could see Earth through the window. "Are we in …. space?" he guffawed.

"Let me guess, the general failed to tell you that part?" Caldwell commented glancing at O'Neil and Mitchell

"It was such a minor detail," Mitchell said shrugging his shoulders.

Caldwell rolled his eyes and addressed the three space virgins in front of him. "The answer to your question is yes. Yes we are in space. The journey to our destination will take approximately three weeks," Caldwell informed them. "Any questions you have during that time, you can address to Lieutenant Simon or Lieutenant Ryder," he added gesturing to the two female Lieutenants flanking him. "Now if you follow Lieutenant Ryder, she'll take you to your assigned quarters for the trip."

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

MSG – 2

_These halls remind me of a submarine, if I'd had ever actually had been on a submarine. I think a sub looks like this, only smaller. And it can fly, I wonder if it can float? It's a sub in space. _The thoughts rumbled through Evan's head as he walked down the corridor heading toward his room, the closet-like space he shared with his dear brother Hank Lawson.

Evan stuffed a miniature cup cake in his mouth as he walked. _The food on this boat isn't bad. It's not good, but it's not whatta-burger__ either. I wonder what the food will be like when we get to where we're going? Which will be tomorrow, since according to my new best friend Karin Simon, Lieutenant Karin Simon, we'll be arriving early. _While Evan stopped at his door, his mind was in overdrive. He keyed in access code into the locking mechanism and walked through the entrance when it slid open. Evan found Hank lying on his bunk when he entered the room.

"What're you doing here?" Evan asked collapsing onto his own bunk. "Nothing to do in the infirmary?"

"No, not right now," Hank replied staring at the ceiling.

"Do I detect a bit of boredom in your voice?"

"For once, you're right about me," Hank said glancing over at his brother. "I never thought I'd say this … but I'm really glad I didn't join the Navy. I can barely stand three weeks in a confined space. I can't imagine being out to sea for months."

"What would you say if I told you that we might be getting to our destination early?" Evan asked pushing himself against the wall.

"If that were true, I'd …. I'd make Divya give you that back rub you are always grumbling about," Hank commented.

"Well, you better call her over here, because I have it on a reliable source that we'll be landing tomorrow," Evan said blowing smugly on his finger tips. He watched Hank roll over on the bunk and sit up.

"What?"

"Apparently there is another ship traveling with us. Well, sort of. I guess they left after we did and are actually ahead of us because they have better engines or something. But then yesterday something happened and they had to land and for whatever reason they can't take off again. So tomorrow, we'll be wherever they are, and that's where we'll stay for the next nine months."

"Somewhere where we can't take off again?" Hank questioned with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Apparently," Evan replied shrugging his shoulders.

"Who told you that?"

"Lieutenant Simon."

"Lieutenant Simon?" Hank repeated. "The same Lieutenant Simon that I caught giving you a blowjob in this very room just a couple of days ago?"

"Yeah, one and the same," Evan answered with a sly grin on his face.

"You sure she wasn't just saying that to get in your pants again?" Hank asked standing up from the bunk.

"I'm not that gullible," Evan replied defensively. "Why would she lie?"

"Because she is horny and it doesn't take much to learn that you are easily conned by money, intrigue and sex," Hank replied pacing around their small space.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Evan scowled lying flat on the bunk. "I didn't get the impression that she was lying."

"It doesn't make sense," Hank said leaning against the closet. "General O'Neill told me that once the ship got to its destination, if Boris needed me, I could be back in New York in a couple of hours."

"And you believed him?" Evan yelped waving his arms around. "Hank, we've been flying very fast through space for the past nine days. What makes you think we can just go back to Earth as the snap of your fingers?"

Hank shrugged and shook his head. "I don't know," he said shoving his hands into his pockets. "I have a lot of questions and not a lot of answers. And I'm getting really really tired of being stuck on this ship."

"Guess we'll just have to wait until tomorrow to see who's right," Evan replied lacing his fingers behind his head.

…**~…**

"Evan could you get that case?" Divya asked as _HankMed _packed up their gear from Daedulas preparing for their transfer to Atlantis.

"Evan get this, Evan do that," Evan grumbled picking up the case as Divya asked. "You know, Hank promised me that you would give me a back rub. When do you plan to pay up?"

"When hell freezes over," Divya answered grabbing the last of the gear. "I'm ready here. How about you?" she directed to Evan as he put the last case on the transport cart.

"I guess," he said pushing the cart into the corridor for the Marines to move over to their new home. "Have you seen Hank lately?"

"He's already over on Atlantis getting acquainted," Divya answered looking around her quarters.

"And he left us to do the dirty work?" Evan half asked, half commented.

"I believe Hank is suffering from cabin fever," Divya replied. "The change of scenery will do him good."

"Change of scenery?" Evan guffawed as he stepped out into the hall. "We're transferring from one ship to another."

"And your point?"

"I'd hardly call it a change of scenery," Evan complained. "We spend ten days cooped up on this bucket of bolts or whatever is holding it together just to transfer to another ship that is floating in the middle of a very huge ocean."

"Lieutenant Ryder informed me Atlantis is over a mile long and wide," Divya argued. "It's a floating city. Plenty of space to spread out and shake out the cobwebs."

"Is that coming from someone that has had to live under her parents thumb?" Evan asked his partner as they walked to the exit ramp on the port side of the ship.

"Perhaps I was due for a change of scenery myself," Divya remarked. "And it doesn't matter if it is to a ship in the middle of the ocean."

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

MSG – 3

**A month later. **

"What made you think that you could negotiate a truce with these people?" Rodney McKay implored as Sheppard's team trudged back to the gate.

"Because they are bickering over … tiddlywinks," the accused answered throwing his hands up in the air.

"Tiddlywinks? Oh please!" McKay grumbled. "How about we use grown up wah-" He tripped over a tree root and nearly fell flat on his face.

"It worked didn't it?" the man questioned. When there was no response from McKay, he turned around to see Rodney flailing around trying to catch his balance. "Hey, need a hand?" the man asked reaching out for Rodney's arm.

"Get your hands off me," Rodney snarked, jerking his arm away from the man. "I hardly need a CPA to come out here to rescue me from ah…. ah….," Rodney stammered as he lost the balance battle and landed on his ass in the mud.

"Coming from someone who can barely balance his checkbook, a CPA is exactly what you need," Evan R Lawson smarted back. Despite Rodney's protests, he helped him to his feet anyway.

"I'll have you know, I hold a PhD in math and am perfectly capable of balancing my own checkbook," Rodney remarked trying to brush the mud off his pant leg.

"Oh, is that why you put me on that special project last week … checking over your tax returns for the past five years?" Evan said flippantly.

"That was a test to see how trust worthy you were," Rodney replied defensively.

"Right," Evan remarked slowly with a sly grin on his face. He crossed his arms at his chest smugly. "So Mr. PhD, if you have so much experience with math, why is it that I found a handful of deductions that you missed and I dunno … could have increased your returns by thousands of dollars." Evan waved his hand around to make his point.

"Scientific math is my area … not accounting," Rodney replied with an indignant tone.

Ronon watched the verbal foray silently before shaking his head. The banter between the two wasn't anything new. It had started the minute Mr. Woolsey had informed McKay that General O'Neil assigned Evan as Rodney's personal assistant. McKay had done everything to dismiss Evan from that detail to no avail. On most days, their relationship and the nonstop chatter was amusing. Evan could match McKay's analytical babble almost better than Sheppard… and when the McKay speak became too scientific, Evan knew exactly how to cut through the junk to say it in plain simple terms. It was clear to everyone on Atlantis that Evan annoyed the hell out of McKay and that in itself made Evan a likeable guy.

Although he had spent most of the past month confined to Atlantis, Evan was off world this week at Mr. Woolsey's request. Major Teldy's team, SGA-4, had reported the villagers in Mrtville on M47-191 needed help with their economic system, Mr. Woolsey felt Evan, the resident CPA, would be the perfect person to address the issue and make recommendations for improvement. He had a productive couple of days when SGA-4 was escorting him. Then SGA-1 was assigned to help Evan complete the assignment and present the plan to the leader. That is when all hell broke loose, which was partly … actually mostly Rodney's fault.

Ronon felt his lip curl up over his teeth and the urge to snap Rodney's neck burned in his throat. "How much longer are you going to let that go on?" he growled in Sheppard's direction.

"I was kinda enjoying it," Sheppard replied turning to look back at the two bickering men. He chuckled as the two argued like two ole ladies.

"I'm not," Ronon informed him with a look that spoke volumes.

"Relax, Chewie," John remarked casually. "It's kinda fun to see someone match wits with McKay and get away with it."

"They are fighting over a woman," Teyla said flatly catching both men off guard.

"A wha… what did you say?" John coughed.

"McKay and Lawson have the same taste in women?" Ronon guffawed.

"Apparently," Teyla nodded looking at the two men as they continued to argue as they walked.

"How do you figure? All I hear is finance and accounting terms," John remarked adjusting his grip on his P-90.

"Divya."

"Divya? She's hot," Ronon grunted.

"Yeah she is extremely …. hot," John commented slightly miffed about Teyla's revelation. "But she's hardly McKay's type."

"Or Lawson's," Ronon added.

"Divya and Evan are only friends," Teyla said. "McKay has a crush on her."

"And he and Evan are fighting about it?" Sheppard questioned.

"Yes, Evan is rather protective of Divya," Teyla replied with a smile. "Remind you of anyone you know?"

John was quiet for a moment before answering Teyla. He knew exactly where she was going with that … a small innuendo about their relationship over the past five years. "Yeah, I guess I get that," he replied winking at Teyla. "Rodney! Get a move on before the sun sets!" John yelled to McKay completely changing the subject.

…**~…**

"Hank?"

The voice echoed down the corridor from the mess hall and Dr. Lawson stopped to look back toward the doorway. The brunette walking toward him had a huge smile plastered across her face and was er … beautiful.

"Oh my god, I can't believe it," the female said with a stunned expression on her face. "Dr. Hank!" She practically jumped into his arms and pressed herself against his body in a straggle hold hug.

"Ugh, hi?" Hank said, not embracing the woman. "Do … I … know you?" he asked when she finally let go.

"I should say so… you saved my life!" the woman exclaimed.

"Okay," Hank replied slowly trying to place the face. The standard base uniforms gave everyone that _look like everyone else _appearance, so he couldn't quite put a finger on who she was. "I don't…"

"At Boris's party? Memorial Day weekend?" she said supplying him the missing information.

"Oh!" Hank blurted out remembering the night that sealed his fate in the Hamptons. "April," he added sheepishly as the name finally came to his lips. "What'r'ya doing here?"

"I'm part of the expedition," April replied.

"Part of the expedition?" Hank repeated with a questioning look.

"I'm a geologist," she said shrugging her shoulders. "I don't like to tell the Hamptonites because they give me a weird look…like it's a crime to be smart and pretty." She smiled nervously.

"No, that's not a weird combination," Hank said with a less than reassuring tone.

"Oh really? Then why are you staring at me like I have the plague?"

"I'm not," Hank said shaking his head and flashing his award winning smile on her. "I'm just surprised. You've been in the city for a month and I haven't seen you?"

"No, I just came through the gate yesterday. I saw you in the mess hall this morning," April replied.

"Ah, the gate," Hank said glancing up just as a marine walked by and completely eyeballed April. "I can't get used to that thing yet."

"Yeah, it takes awhile," she agreed. "I've been part of the Stargate program a year and it still kinda freaks me out." April touched her hand to her ear and then mumbled something into the mic. "Okay, I gotta go Hank. I'll see you around?"

"Yeah, I'm here for the next eight months," Hank said.

"Good, because I never got over that feeling," April remarked with a sly grin and turned to walk the other direction.

…**~…**

"What's your problem with Evan?" John asked McKay over his dinner tray. It was just John and Rodney sharing the evening meal. Teyla was with Torren in her quarters and Ronon was spending time with Amelia.

"What'd'ya mean what's my problem?" Rodney grunted. "Did he say something?"

"No, it's just that everybody on the base as noticed that … something is up between the two of you," John explained trying to say it but not say it to his overly sensitive friend.

"Noticed what?" Rodney guffawed. "I haven't worked with Lorne for days."

John rolled his eyes. Of course, Rodney would think he was talking about Major _Evan _Lorne because he probably couldn't remember that Evan was Evan Lawson's name. "Not Evan Lorne … Evan Lawson," John said plainly waving his fork at McKay.

"Oh him?" Rodney scowled. "Let me get my list. Where is it?" Rodney mumbled fumbling with his pockets. "Oh....guess I forgot it… because I just wanted to have one conversation that didn't revolve around that annoying little twit."

"Evan is not a twit," John said taking a drink of his water.

"Don't tell me you jumped on the Evan is great bandwagon," Rodney grumbled rolling his eyes.

"He did file an amended tax return for me and netted me an additional refund," John commented. "He has a lot of great attributes."

"Like what? He can count? This is a scientific expedition not an accounting seminar," Rodney replied.

"Well, apparently someone with more clout than you thought he was worthy of the expedition," Sheppard remarked.

"Yeah, right," Rodney grunted. "I heard O'Neil let him come along because of his brother and that Indian woman."

"That Indian woman?" John repeated with raised eyebrows. "She has a name."

"I know her name," Rodney retorted.

"Do I sense some hostility?" John asked when he saw Rodney flick at his food with his fork.

"Some? That's all I've been experiencing since we landed on this god-forsaken planet," Rodney grumbled furrowing his eyebrows. He dropped his fork and ran his hand over his forehead.

"Wanna talk about it?" John ventured.

"Which part? The part where Jennifer dumped me and transferred out of the program or when the engines crapped out and we missed the LZ by … I dunno … a couple thousand light years and landed on a planet that we have never been to or was ever charted by the Ancients and weirdly enough in a part of the Pegasus Galaxy that never even existed on any star chart until we landed here or that O'Neil hired some number crunching freak to be my lackey out of pure amusement," Rodney ranted throwing his arm up in the air.

"Actually I was referring to your infatuation to Divya," Sheppard said. He stabbed a couple of green beans with the fork and stuck them in his mouth.

"Oh that … there isn't any infatuation," Rodney answered quietly. He picked the fork up and moved the vegetables around with it. "She's not interested."

"Do you know why?"

"Yeah, because she's interested in that geek Lawson," Rodney yelped.

"Rodney … she just got out of a relationship," Sheppard said quietly. "A rather complicated one I might add."

"How do you …?" Rodney mumbled glancing up at John sharply. "Oh, I see, out kirking again?" He dropped his fork on his tray in disgust.

"No," Sheppard answered. "It's my job as military leader of the base to have conversations with new staff members … especially ones that will be going off world and patching up my men."

Rodney stared at him wordlessly for a few minutes and then picked up his coffee cup. "And she told you that? Freely?" he asked quietly.

"That and a few other things," John replied with a smile.

"Like what? That she wants to have my babies?"

"Uh, no," John said. "She definitely did not say that."

…**~…**

"What'd'ya doing for dinner?" Evan asked Hank as he walked into the infirmary.

Hank glanced up and watched his brother walk toward him. Evan's ability to adapt to the situation impressed him. Hank had the medical department and the non-traditional illnesses of the Pegasus Galaxy to keep him busy. He had worried about Evan the past few weeks, worried that he was bored and up to no good. Then Mr. Woolsey assigned him to an off world mission and suddenly Evan had a purpose again. Tonight he looked about the best that Hank had seen him since they left the Hamptons.

"Ah, nothing," Hank answered. He sat back in his chair and stretched his arms behind his head. "How was your off world adventure?"

"The off world adventure to the medieval village went great," Evan said straddling the stool next to his brother. "I even solved a century old political debate."

"You … solved a world crisis?" Hank repeated cocking his eyebrow.

"Well, sort of," Evan backpedalled. "Major Teldy and I had been listening to the townspeople bitching all week about their neighbors down the street. So I just pointed out how ludicrous the dispute was and suggested a truce," Evan shrugged acting like it was nothing.

"You suggested a truce and what? Did it work?"

"Yeah, it was working great until Dr. McKay stuck his nose in it," Evan scowled shaking his head at the memory. "If it wasn't for my ability to bullshit fast while making absolutely no sense whatsoever McKay would have started a civil war."

"Why do I get the impression that you and Dr. McKay are still not getting along?" Hank asked shutting the lid of his laptop.

"It's not an impression, it's the truth," Evan grumbled. "Going off world with Major Teldy's team was probably the best thing that ever happened to me. In fact, I asked her if I could go off world with them more often."

"Really?" Hank responded, not sure how he was supposed to act. He had been off world a few times himself and while it was a fascinating experience to visit new worlds, he wasn't quite sure if Evan was … well, ready for that. "What'd she say?"

Evan rolled his eyes and chuckled. "She thought I was hitting on her," he replied with a grin. "And honestly I wasn't at the time, I swear. I just like hanging out with her team because it makes me feel useful."

"Evan, everyone thinks you're useful," Hank started to interrupt.

"No Henry, you have no idea. You and Divya spend most of your day in here treating patients or looking at fungi through a microscope. McKay hates me, Conan the Barbarian tries to kill me in the gym a couple times a week and Captain Sniper nearly shot me at weapons training. Major Teldy is the only one that has treated me decent … except for Mr. Woolsey and that guy … creeps me out."

"Woolsey is a little stiff," Hank nodded standing up from the stool. "But he did ask for your help."

"Yeah, his only redeeming quality at this point," Evan agreed reluctantly. "So about dinner?"

"I could eat," Hank replied waving to one of the med techs that he was leaving.

"Where's Divya?"

"Oh, I think she has a date," Hank replied grabbing his Atlantis issued jacket.

"Please tell me it's not with the McKay dork," Evan grumbled steepling his hands together.

"No, don't worry," Hank replied shaking his head. "McKay is not her type."

…**~…**

Rodney McKay was definitely not Divya type, but John Sheppard had certainly sparked her interest, even if it was just to share some ice cream and a walk after dinner. As the two made their way along the south pier, Sheppard watched Divya watch as the sun slowly set in the sky.

"Are you certain that is not west," Divya questioned the Colonel as the sky turned a warm shade of rusty red.

"Yeah, I'm sure," John replied slowly. "I told you yesterday that nothing in this part of the galaxy falls into the normal laws of physics."

"I know you said that … but I find it just odd," Divya commented looking up at him. "Of course I'm saying that still not believing I'm in a different galaxy far away from Earth."

"The ten day trip on Daedulas didn't convince you?" John laughed at her. "Or every day that you walk through the Stargate?"

Divya chuckled and pointed her spoon at him. "Don't get me started about that Stargate," she said with a serious expression on her face. "I still don't understand how that works either."

"Well, that makes two of us, but I don't need to get hung up on the how. I just need it to work when I dial it and run through," John replied taking the spoon out of her hand. "You shouldn't point this at the military leader of the base. I am armed," he reminded her.

"As if I could kill you with a plastic spoon," she joked taking the spoon back from him. Their fingers lingered at the contact and John stepped closer to Divya to whisper into her ear.

"You could kill me about twenty five ways and make them all look like natural causes," he whispered huskily. "And I'm not exactly speaking medically either."

She felt the heat of a blush creep over her face as she watched him step back and cup her cheek. "That is an interesting proposition," she stammered trying to find her voice over the school-girl crush she was feeling for this man with the wild hair.

"Well, I'm all about the interesting," John replied brushing his thumb across her delicate skin. He noticed her shiver and slid his hand across her shoulder. "Why don't we head in?" he commented directing her toward the city.

"Sounds like a good idea," Divya mumbled not sure what else she should say.

The two walked quickly to the south entrance and entered the city near one of the underground passages. Divya could feel Sheppard's hand in the small of her back and the heat of his body against her arm. Once they cleared the doorway, Sheppard pulled her down a couple of hallways out of the prying eyes of the security camera. When they were clear, he pressed her up against the wall, brushed his lips across her face, planting an innocent kiss on her lips.

"Thanks for the walk Divya," he whispered as he pulled back from her.

"Any time Colonel Sheppard," she said quietly holding his gaze with her eyes.

"You know, if we're going to be kissing, you don't have to call me Colonel," John remarked trailing his hand down the side of her face. He felt her hand touch his resting at her waist. "Call me John."

"Okay John," Divya said. "But remember that I said …"

"Shhh," John shushed her by putting his finger to her lips. "I know exactly what you said Divya and I just asked for a walk and some ice cream. I couldn't resist the kiss. I promise... scouts honor… that I won't press you."

"Okay," Divya replied relaxing against his body. "Will you walk me to my room?" she asked looking around the corridor.

"Naah, my whole purpose of dragging you over here was to dump you, so Major Lorne or Major Rivers could be the heroes and miraculously find you out here," he joked.

"Right," Divya replied with a coy grin. "Then I would have to break more hearts rejecting them."

"How is it that you never rejected me?" John asked her as they started to walk down the corridor.

"I did reject you," Divya reminded him. She stopped and leaned in, dropping a quick kiss on his cheek. "You just don't take no for an answer."

"Well, I'm demanding like that," John said, cupping her head in his hand and brushing his lips across hers. He felt her reciprocate and was ready to ramp it up with her when a panel in the wall next to Divya hissed and popped open. John went on the defense immediately, quickly putting himself between the panel and Divya and pulling his 9 mil from his holster. When the dust settled from the sudden movement, John had to blink several times to understand what he was seeing. And he didn't believe his eyes.

"Crap."

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

MSG – 4

John Sheppard watched as Rodney scanned the drawer for the tenth time. The corridor was filled with scientists and security personnel as well as Mr. Woolsey and Divya, who refused to leave, despite Sheppard asking her nicely more than once.

"I think you scanned it enough already," John commented as Rodney stared at the contents in disbelief. "It's not going to jump out and bite you."

"Well it should," Rodney replied dropping his hands to his sides. "I don't understand it. Am I supposed to believe that these have been here all along? And… and this drawer just popped out while the two of you were what? Making out?" He flicked his flashlight impatiently in Sheppard's direction.

"We weren't making out," Sheppard growled glancing over at Divya. There was a reason why he wanted her to leave before Rodney got here and here was just one example of it. "We were just standing here talking and the drawer…"

"Popped out," Divya finished the sentence for him.

Rodney eyed the two and flicked his flashlight back at the door. "I'm just trying to understand how after five years in the city, we could just happen to find two zed pm's stashed in a drawer in an empty hallway," Rodney said rather loudly.

John mouthed inaudible words and looked at Woolsey helplessly. Rodney was right that it didn't make any sense and John didn't really have an explanation for it. _Well, other than we were verge of making out when it opened, _John thought glancing back at Divya.

"We know that some of the Ancient technology has a mental component, so maybe, I don't know, maybe the technology sensed me in the corridor," Sheppard offered as an explanation.

"Yeah, making out with your girlfriend," Rodney growled under his breath.

"Dr. McKay, that is out of line," Mr. Woolsey said in Divya's defense.

"No, it's not," Rodney mumbled looking back at the drawer. He flicked the light from the flashlight up into the wall cavity. "Yes, we know that their technology has a mental component and we know that the golden child here has the natural gene to make everything work. So it's completely logical why when he is hiding out in a back hallway in an alleged romantic moment that the city would respond to him."

"Are you trying to say the city is jealous?" Divya questioned Rodney.

"No, but yes … maybe the city _is_ jealous," Rodney replied snapping his fingers.

"I've never had a jealous female give me a gift before," John remarked looking down at the drawer again. "Especially two very nice and valuable zero point modules."

"In any event, we need to determine whether or not they are viable components," Woolsey commented.

"Yes, I'll have my team take them to a lab for testing," McKay replied snapping out of his delusional jealous world.

"And Colonel Sheppard, you and Divya need to report to the infirmary for the once over," Woolsey added.

"Right away," John agreed corralling Divya with his arm. "Major Rivers, maintain a detail on this hallway and sweep for any other hidden drawers or panels."

…**~…**

A couple hours later, Hank had one theory why the drawer suddenly appeared after five years of the expedition being in the city. He had checked the results three times and even ran an additional blood screen on his patient. He stood nervously in front of the senior team in the conference room and scanned the eyes staring at him.

"Divya has the ancient gene," Hank said flatly. He watched the faces for reaction and noticed no one even flinched.

"So what," Rodney retorted. "Most of us have it because of the gene therapy when we first arrived." Rodney continued to ramble on in the background as Hank talked over him.

"I realize that many of the expedition received the gene therapy, but Divya did not," Hank said rather loudly. His statement got the attention of most of the room's occupants, except Rodney who was still on his tangent.

"Wait, wait, are you saying the Divya has it nat…..Rodney will you shut up!" John yelped when he could barely hear himself over his friend's jealous ramblings. When the room grew quiet, John half repeated himself. "Divya has the gene _naturally?" _

"Yes," Hank said nodding his head. "And from what I can tell, her 'strength' is at the same level as yours."

"Divya has the gene naturally," Rodney repeated his voice thick with jealousy. "That's just great! Five years and literally hundreds of scientists and doctors have walked through the gate to _work _on this expedition and one hitchhiker shows up and she just happens to have the gene."

"Divya is a member of the medical team, Dr. McKay," Mr. Woolsey informed him.

"Oh, right …. a glorified medic," Rodney grumbled under his breath.

"She is not a glorified medic," John started to say.

"Sure, you'd say that … since you've been kirking her since she got here."

"Rodney, if you will just pull your scientific head out of your proverbial ass and stow the jealousy bit, perhaps you could figure out what having two _natural _Ancient genes in the city could mean," Sheppard retorted with the most cutting tone he could muster.

"Fine," Rodney mumbled as the color drained out of his face.

"And the next time you have a hypochondriac moment, I'll make sure Dr. Lawson assigns Ms. Katdara to work on you," Woolsey added as deadpan as he could muster.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

MSG – 5

**Month 2**

Somehow over the course of thirty days, Rodney dropped the contempt that he held for Divya rebuffing him and started to embrace her friendship. Rodney was completely intrigued with her Ancient abilities and combined with Sheppard's, the city did some pretty cool things. Little bells and whistles seemed to be jumping out of the wood work in more ways than one, which was a turn-on for Rodney in an odd way.

Of course, the friendship didn't start out easy. There was a lot of snipping between the two over every little thing. Divya constantly informed Rodney he was just like Evan and Rodney kept calling her "princess." As rocky of start as it was, their friendship was bridged the night Rodney came limping back from an SGA-1 mission and Divya was the only doctor-like figure in the infirmary. She handled him and his chronic complaining with more dignity than any other doctor, including his former girlfriend, ever had and even managed to keep _all _the details confidential. Suddenly Divya was his new best friend.

Today was a busy day on base. Eight teams were heading off world on attending to various tasks, exploring, medical, trading and socializing trips with their established allies. The four military heads, Sheppard, Lorne, Rivers and Teldy had plans to explore the new part of the galaxy they had somehow missed in their first five years in Pegasus. The gate was dialing outbound as fast as the teams could leave. Divya was waiting with Teldy's team on deck as they waited for the dial out to M45-102 on their initial survey.

"Hey Div!" Rodney's voice rang out from the upper balcony.

Divya craned her neck up to look Rodney in the face and noticed him waving her up the stairs. She dropped her bag and walked slowly up the main staircase, meeting him half way. "Yes, what is it Rodney?"

"Is she here?" Rodney asked looking around her down at the waiting team.

"Is who where?" Divya questioned him. "Oh, you mean April?"

"Yeah, I mean April," Rodney replied. "Who else would I be talking about?"

"I thought perhaps Morgan Dempsey," Divya replied with a smile.

"No!" Rodney grunted shaking his head. "That chick's crazy!"

"Rodney, you cannot judge a person negatively because they eat grapefruit for breakfast," Divya informed him.

"Yes I can," he grumbled. "Do you know how dangerous citrus can be?" he stared at her and noticed she wasn't going for his argument. "It is for me," he clarified. "I'm allergic. What if I tried to kiss her right after she ate that disgusting stuff? I could die. My throat could constrict and I would suffocate. And she not medical rated, so I would be dead by the time a real medic found me."

"I think you are over reacting," Divya replied heading back down the stairs. "Morgan likes you."

"Yeah, well, I like to breathe," Rodney commented. "So about this April chick."

"Chick?" Divya repeated with a grimace. "Don't start objectifying her."

"Okay, woman then. Where is she? I thought she was heading out with your team today?" Rodney whispered to her. He inclined his head toward the rest of the team that was standing at the bottom of the landing.

"She was reassigned to Major Rivers team. They left about two hours ago."

"Oh, dammit," Rodney said, clearly disappointed that he couldn't see, meet or flirt with this woman that Divya had been promoting to him.

"Teldy! Next dial is yours!" a control room technician hollered.

"Div, gotta go," Teldy called to get her attention.

"I'll introduce you to her tonight at dinner," Divya said patting her hand reassuringly on his arm.

"Oh, okay," Rodney mumbled as he watched her walk away. "Dinner? Oh my god," he said under his breath as he heading back up the stairs. "I think I'm going to be sick."

…**~…**

"So Divya," Major Anne Teldy called to the Indian woman as they walked back from the small primitive village. "What's the deal with Hank?" the major asked coyly.

"What's what deal?" Divya replied answering the question with a question.

"I mean are he and the geologist a couple?" Teldy clarified. He brown pony tail swept the back of her neck and shoulders as she walked.

"Oh," Divya grunted smiling slightly. "No."

Teldy waited a moment for Divya to elaborate and when nothing happened prodded her along. "Really? Seriously … no?"

"He doesn't have a girlfriend," Divya replied glancing sideways at the brunette woman as they walked.

Teldy chuckled as Divya's plain answer. "Okay … I take it I'm not going to get any information from you huh?"

"If you are looking for gossip than no. If you are asking me if he is single, then I think I've answered your question," Divya said slowing her gait until she had stopped walking. "Are you interested?"

Teldy tilted her head and smiled. "Yeah, I am … I'm usually not into that type, but Hank is … different. He doesn't look at a woman like the other men on base do."

Divya raised her brow at the major and smirked. "And how is that?"

"Like we're lunch meat," Anne replied with a laugh.

"Ah, yes, well Hank is one of the last decent guys out there," Divya chuckled. "My attachment not included."

"Oh, yeah, because Sheppard _does _look at women that way," Teldy laughed and then realized how it sounded. "Except…when he's looking at you, that is," Teldy added as damage control. "Evan looks at women like that."

"Ha! That is an understatement," Divya agreed. She wasn't fazed by the Sheppard comment because it wasn't the first time she was hearing it. "Evan is like a dog in heat around a woman."

"Well, not anymore than most men," Teldy said. "Especially those trapped on our base."

"Evan does have his moments," Divya said in retrospect. "He'll stand up for your honor in a minute."

"Wow, maybe I'm chasing the wrong guy," Teldy commented.

"No, Hank is definitely the better catch," Divya countered. "At least he'd win in a fight. Evan would fast talk a bunch of gibberish and then you'd find him cowering under the table."

"Ha, well, there's something to be said for that," Teldy muttered as her ear piece crackled in her ear.

"Atlantis to SGA-4."

"Teldy here."

"We need your team to return to base immediately for incoming causalities from M79-509."

"Roger that," Teldy replied. "Sharpe, Rauen, Feldman, we gotta go," she yelled over the radio to pull the team back to the gate.

"M79-509? Isn't that where Sheppard and Evan were going?" Divya asked Teldy with a very concerned look on her face.

"Yeah, that's exactly where they were going," Teldy replied with a grimace.

…**~…**

Teldy and Divya ran to the infirmary as soon as they cleared the gate. Mr. Woolsey tried to keep up, spewing a slew of information about the rest of the medical personnel whereabouts, and the status of SGA-1.

"I was only able to pull back one other team," Woolsey gasped as he jogged.

"Which one?" Teldy asked as the trio cleared the infirmary doors.

"SGA-2," Woolsey remarked. "The other teams are out of radio contact or too far from the gate. Sheppard and McKay took the worst of it."

Divya heard the words and stopped short as she ran around the corner in the infirmary. Sheppard and McKay were laying on gurneys just inside the door. Both were bleeding profusely and Rodney was wailing uncontrollably. Teyla, Ronon and Evan stood nearly by, covered in blood. Two med techs were attending to John and Rodney. Divya took a deep breath and pushed her personal feelings to the side before she charged into the room.

"Are you three injured?" Divya said as she past the three.

"No."

"I'm good."

"It's nothing."

"Anne please check them to be sure, and then send them to the showers," Divya ordered barely noticing that Teldy just did it without question. "What do we have?" she asked one of the med techs as she pulled on a pair of gloves.

"Colonel Sheppard has a gunshot wound to the left upper quadrant," the tech said. "Rodney just has some lacerations on his arm."

"Just some lacerations?" Rodney guffawed from the other gurney. "I'm bleeding to death here."

Divya walked to his side and grabbed his arm firmly to inspect the damage. She turned his cheek to look at a gash on the side of his face. "Are you hurt anywhere else?" she asked as she released him and turned to focus on John.

"No, I'm good … but I think I pulled a muscle in my groin during the run and maybe I sprained my ankle," Rodney grumbled as he looked down at the bloody mess of his uniform.

"Good," Divya said not even listening to his rambling. "Apply direct pressure and get a suture kit ready," she instructed the med tech. She turned to John and did a quick assessment of his condition. "Are we certain we cannot reach Hank?" she asked Woolsey, standing helpless in the doorway.

"They are out of radio contact. We're sending a jumper to retrieve them," Woolsey informed her.

"How long will it be until he can get here?" Divya asked still running her assessment.

"Not only is Major Rivers' team is on the other side of the galaxy, but they are on a world with a damaged Stargate. If the gate was operational, it would only take a few minutes. As it is... another team will have to fly about three hours from the orbital gate to the planet to make contact, and then make the return trip." Woolsey tried to explain as calmly as he could. "We're talking six hours at the minimum."

"We don't have that long," Divya replied. "The Colonel needs immediate surgery."

"Dr. Hampton should be here any moment," Woolsey replied.

"Yes, but Dr. Hampton isn't a trauma surgeon!" Divya nearly yelled. She caught herself mid sentence when she saw John's eyes flutter open. "Colonel Sheppard? Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, especially when you're yelling like that," John remarked reaching out for her hand. He coughed as he struggled for a breath. "Relax Divya, I'm not going to die."

"Let me be the judge of that," Divya said. She swallowed hard to push the tears away. Her assessment of John's injuries told her that he was in critical condition and definitely bleeding internally. He needed surgery and fast. Considering how she felt about the man lying below her, she only trusted one person to do the surgery and that person wasn't in the city today. She felt John's fingers caress her palm and she looked down at him. "You need surgery."

"You can do it," he coughed out.

"I'm not the doctor," Divya informed him. "Stitches I can do, procedures under another doctor's guidance yes, but major surgery? That I am not trained for," she said leaning in toward his face.

"You and Hampton can do it," John said softly. "I've seen you stitch up a mean cut or two, you'll be fine. Or are you just saying that to get out of dinner tonight?"

"I am not trying to get out of dinner," Divya argued. "Although, if you're my patient, the code of ethics says I can't date you."

"You were dating me before I became your patient," Sheppard replied. "And Hampton is the doctor isn't he?"

"Control to Mr. Woolsey. Dr. Hampton just cleared the gate," Amelia's voice blared across the city-wide comm.

"Great, Angela, let's get Colonel Sheppard prepped for surgery," Divya said aloud looking up at the other med tech.

"Oh, I get it, this is just your excuse to cut my clothes off," John joked with her as she pushed the gurney toward the surgical bay.

…**~…**

Hank closed his medical case and finished up the last of his paperwork as one of the Travelers females sauntering toward him. Hank clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth to get April's attention and with a flick of his eye asked for help to run interference. The woman's intentions were clear. They had been clear all day and he had figured that she would choose this moment to attempt to make her move. He glanced down to his side arm, snuggled in its holster on his thigh and mentally thanked Lieutenant Abbott for the weapons training. While he was sure he wasn't going to need to shoot her, the women of this world seemed to be a little aggressive. Myra was no exception. She was scantily dressed and what little clothing she was wearing, was strategically placed to leave little to the imagination.

"And I thought the women in the Hampton's were bad," Hank mumbled under his breath to April as he stowed his tablet in his nap sack.

"Just the ones that are afflicted with nightingale syndrome," April laughed. "Oh my god! Did you treat her too?"

"No, not even close," Hank grumbled. "Myra," Hank greeted the woman when she sashayed up to him at the table. .

"Dr. Lawson," Myra nodded coming very very close to Hank. "Are you ready to leave?"

"Ah, yeah," Hank said taking a step back from the woman. He kept his eyes on her face, even though her body language gave the distinct impression that she wanted them elsewhere.

"So soon?" Myra crooned. She jutted her breasts toward him and batted her eyes at him. "Are you sure you can't stay for a meal?"

Hank glanced at his watch and over his shoulder at April, begging for her to do something.

"Dr. Lawson, we need to get going," April said with a cheesy smile.

"Yes, we've got to be getting back," Hank agreed taking another step away from the woman. "Lots of sick people in this galaxy."

"There's lots of sick people here," Myra said breathlessly. "I think I have a pain in my neck." She ran her hand over her shoulder and winked at Hank.

_Oh, geezus, _he thought retreating another few steps. "Maybe Dr. Fuller should look at that …Dr. Fuller?" Hank stammered shooting April a straggled look over Myra's shoulder.

"The rock doctor?" Myra questioned running her hand seductively across her breast.

"I'm a little more than a rock doctor," April blurted out defensively, completely annoyed by the insult.

"What kind of symptoms are you feeling?" Hank asked not really wanting an answer. Before he knew it, she was on him like flies on crap.

"I'm feeling hunger Doctor," Myra whispered huskily as her lips brushed across his face. Her lips pressed against his hard and her hands went everywhere … across his chest, down his arms and quickly to the button on his pants.

Hank turned his head to avoid her probing tongue and grabbed her hands, pushing them away from his waist. "Myra, hey!" he yelped as he forced the woman away.

"Get off him!" April yelled leaping to Hank's aid. She pulled Myra back by the arm. "Security!"

"Doc!" Rivers voice rang out across the small courtyard. "We gotta go! There's a medical emergency on Atlantis."

"Ah, I gotta go," Hank backpedalled taking a few more steps away from Myra. _Saved by the bell, _he thought as he grabbed his gear and ran toward the jumper.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: RP & SGA are owned by SyFy & USA. Definitely not me, because I would have wrote better scripts, SGA wouldn't have been cancelled. No infringement intended.

A/N: Hey! What do you guys think so far?? Shamelessly asking for some feedback!

MSG – 6

Evan grabbed his towel of the shower wall and shook his head, splattering the excess water from his hair across the stall.

"Hey!"

He turned toward the voice and started to snicker. Rodney McKay was two stalls away toweling off and was visible perturbed that Evan had managed to spray him.

"What's your beef Einstein?" Evan asked rhetorically.

"I was nearly dry," Rodney wailed throwing a scowl in young Lawson's direction. "I have stitches you know."

"Yeah, stitches… all two of them," Evan muttered rubbing his body with the towel.

"I have six, which says something about me."

"Besides that you're a hypochondriac?" Evan chuckled. "I think it says something that Ronon, Teyla and I weren't sliced at all. Which actually now that I think about it, what exactly did you do that caused that merchant to pull a knife on you anyway?"

"Nothing," Rodney replied defensively. He ruffled the towel through his hair and pulled on a pair of pants.

"Ah, I think it was definitely something," Evan remarked walking out of the stall with a towel draped around his waist. "If it was nothing, Sheppard wouldn't have had to step in and probably … in fact, I'd say … most likely, wouldn't have gotten sh…"

"Don't you think I know that?" Rodney screamed. His voice bounced off the ceramic walls of the room. He struggled to pull a shirt over his head and started yelling again just as the shirt got hung up on his face. "I don't need to be reminded that I'm the sole reason the Colonel was shot, thank you very … agh!"

Evan stepped to Rodney's side and helped him pull the shirt down to his neck. In Rodney's frustration, he pulled the stitches out on his cheek and blood was trickling down his face. "Dude, you're bleeding," Evan commented grabbing Rodney's towel from the bench. He attempted to press the towel against the cut when Rodney pushed him away.

"I got it," Rodney yelped. "You're not my babysitter!"

"Thank god for that!" Evan grunted. "You need to put some pressure on that or it's not going to stop bleeding."

"I said I got it," McKay half cried. "Ow!"

"Here, let me help..."

"No!" Rodney protested swatting at Evan's hand.

"Will you just!" Evan growled winning the hand slap battle. He pressed the towel against Rodney's face and replaced his hand with Rodney's to hold it in place. "Hold that for a minute, while I get dressed." Evan pulled his boxers up under the towel and then grabbed his uniform pants from his locker.

"Eeeee," Rodney hissed as another stitch ripped open. "Oh crap, that's a lot of blood," Rodney mumbled as he looked at the towel.

"What part of hold the towel to your face indicated it was okay to look at the blood? Geezus, don't faint!" Evan replied shoving a leg into the pants. He grabbed a t-shirt and pulled it over his head, catching Rodney's sway out of the corner of his eye. "McKay! Sit down!" Evan yelled reaching out to catch Rodney before he stumbled into the bench. He pushed the man into a sitting position on the bench in front of the lockers. "You don't follow directions very well do you?" Evan mumbled as he managed to get his other leg in his pants and shove his feet into his boots.

Five minutes later, he steered a stumbling Rodney back into the infirmary. There seemed to be a lot more people hanging around this trip, including Dr. Rick Phillips, the first year resident, who had arrived on base this week.

"Hey, got a bleeder here," Evan called out just as Rodney fainted dead away. "And a fainter," Evan added as he managed to catch the scientist and lower him to the floor.

"What happened?" Phillips asked as he ran across the room.

"I dunno, we were sort of arguing and then he started bleeding and then he started to look a little woozy," Evan answered stepping out of the way.

"He was a history of panic attacks," one of the med tech's at Rodney's side remarked.

"Okay, we got this," Phillips said giving Evan a cue to get the hell out of the way.

Evan backed out of the area and started to leave the infirmary when he heard crying in the room on his right. Curiosity got the best of him and he ventured into the doorway to see who it was.

"Divya?" Evan questioned when he saw his teammate sitting on a chair just inside the door. "Divya, are you okay?" he asked squatting on the floor next to her. He watched her sniffle and dab her eyes with a tissue, but was unable to speak. "Hey, it's okay," he mumbled dropping one knee to the floor just as she fell, sobbing into his arms.

…**~…**

"Doc, we'll be at the gate in a minute," Rivers informed Hank just as he started the dial up.

"Can we get a status before we land?" Hank asked.

"Sure, waiting for the gate to engage," Rivers said as the HUD appeared in front of him. "Jumper four to control."

"Jumper four go ahead."

"The doc needs an update."

"Hampton is in surgery with the Colonel," control stated giving no other information.

"Roger that, fifteen seconds to gate," Rivers replied looking over his shoulder to Hank. "What'd'ya thinkin?"

Hank shook his head and looked at his watch. "That it's more serious than they originally stated," he replied.

"Don't worry, it's Sheppard, the guy has nine lives," Rivers replied about one second before the jumper hit the gate.

The jumper had barely settled in the bay when Hank bolted from the hatch and ran in a full out sprint to the infirmary. He slid in front of the sinks and stripped out of his uniform, downing a pair of scrubs and ran to the doorway of the surgical suite to check Sheppard's status with Dr. Hampton.

…**~…**

Evan watched Divya stitch Rodney's face wincing at the sight of the blood and the gaping gash in the guy's face. The urge to pat himself on his back for getting her back in the game was thick in his throat, but he knew better than to take any credit. He might have been able to talk Divya into it on his own right after he finished convincing her that she hadn't killed Colonel Sheppard by abandoning the surgical bay. As it was, Doc Phillips nearly bowled them over when he ran around the corner and then told Divya that Rodney needed her help as he continued down the hall to help Doc Hampton.

Despite that Divya was doing an adequate job keeping McKay calm while piecing his face back together. Evan knew she was worried sick about the Colonel. Divya was good at hiding her feelings around some people, but he wasn't one of them. Evan could read her like a book … at least in theory anyway. He could see the tension in her eyebrows and in the tone of her voice. She looked a little pale and as soon as she set the instruments down, he noticed her hands were shaking. When his older brother raced through the room in a blur of motion, everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"There," Divya said with some finality in her voice. "I've put you back together Rodney. Please do not rip them out again."

"Well, if the idiot that put them in the first time would have done it right," Rodney grumbled pushing off the gurney and walking over to a medical cabinet to look at his reflection.

"She placed the stitches correctly the first time," Divya said flatly. "Your overactive imagination was the reason they came out." She pulled her gloves off and tossed them in the appropriate waste receptacle.

Rodney glanced in Evan's direction and was about to say something when Hank made another whirlwind dash through the room. "Whats going on?" Rodney questioned the elder Lawson brother. "Is Sheppard alright?"

"I don't know," Hank blurted out as he flipped the sink on. "I won't know anything until I get in there."

Evan trailed his gaze from Hank to Divya to Rodney and back to Hank with a stunned expression on his face. He had heard all the stories about Sheppard and his nine lives. The man commanded the base in more ways than one and his absence in Atlantis would be a very bad thing.

"Divya?"

Rodney's voice pulled Evan's gaze back toward his HankMed partner just as Rodney hooked her arm and caught her as she fainted. "Divya! Hank! There is something wrong with Divya!" Evan screamed as he knelt at her side.

…**~…**

"Welcome back," Evan greeted Divya when she opened her eyes. He grabbed a flashlight and flicked the light straight into her eyes. "Pupils are wow! Yeah, they both constricted."

Divya blinked and snapped her eyes shut as the light blinded her. "EVAN!' she moaned putting her hand over her eyelids. "What happened?"

"You had a … what did Hank call it?" Evan asked someone over his shoulder.

"Syncope," Major Teldy said walking to the side of the bed.

"Yeah, syncope," Evan said. "Whatever that is."

"Sudden unconsciousness," Divya remarked pushing hers body upward. She started feeling a little dizzy and leaned back on her elbows.

"Sudden? Yeah, that's one way to put it," Evan laughed. "You dropped like a brick."

"Evan! Show some concern," Teldy scolded him. Teldy reached over and pulled the head of the bed up into a reclined position, so Divya could lie back more comfortably.

"I was concerned, I am concerned. Wait, Hank gave me a list of questions to ask you. Where's the tablet?" he asked looking around the side of the bed. He found the tablet sitting on a nearby table and grabbed it. "Okay," he said punching some buttons on the touch screen. "When was the last time you ate?"

"Since when are you the resident med tech?" Divya questioned closing her eyes.

"Since Hank put Major Teldy in charge of the infirmary until someone…er … Dr. Mercer got back, which should be any minute now. But in the meantime he ordered me to ask you these questions when you came to," Evan said frankly. "I _am _capable of filling in the blanks, you know."

"Okay, fine," Divya moaned.

"So?"

"So what?" Divya replied opening one eye to look at him.

"When was the last time you ate?"

Divya was quiet for a second contemplating her answer. "At breakfast."

"Are you sure?" Evan asked. "Breakfast was over ten hours ago."

"Yes, I'm sure," Divya replied. "I haven't been hungry since."

"Okay, maybe we should get you something to eat," Evan replied slowly. He looked at Teldy and inclined his head to the right trying to send her off on an errand.

"Evan, why don't you get Divya something to eat while I run through the questions with her," Teldy said taking the tablet out of his hands.

"What? Hank told me to do it," he protested.

"EVAN!" Divya and Teldy yelled at him in unison.

"Okay, fine … food it is then," Evan said stepping away from the bed.

…**~…**

"So why'd she faint?" Evan asked as Hank was reviewing Divya's test results.

Hank sighed heavily and shook his head. "Evan, I can't tell you that," Hank said.

"Don't give me that doctor patient confidentiality bull Henry," Evan argued. "This isn't Boris, or a HankMed client or some random expedition member. This is Divya, my friend, your friend, our partner in crime. She's practically our sister."

Hank considered his argument for a moment. "I suspect she was a little hypoglycemic," Hank finally said.

"Hypoglycemic?" Evan repeated. "Like low sugar level? Because she hadn't eaten all day? Right?"

"Yes."

"So then it had nothing to do with her near panic attack?" Evan remarked.

"Wait, panic attack?" Hank questioned his brother tilting his head slightly. "When did she have a panic attack?"

"Before you got back to the base," Evan informed him casually. "I found her sitting on the floor outside of the surgical suite."

"You didn't tell me that," Hank said looking at the test results again.

"You didn't ask," Evan replied. "She was a wreck. She was crying so hard she couldn't breathe. And she was trembling like it was nine hundred degrees below zero. It took me like ten minutes to calm her down."

Evan continued to drone on in the background and Hank nodded his head as his mind took off on a hundred meter dash. _That changes my diagnosis, _he thought as he tapped some keys on the tablet. He completely ignored the rest of the ramblings spilling out of Evan's mouth while he considered how he was going to handle his conversation with Divya. _Evan's right, she is like a sister to us, _he realized.

…**~…**

"Hank," Divya said emotionlessly once the door to her quarter slid open.

"Div," Hank replied. He checked off his mental checklist of her condition. _Evan wasn't kidding about her looking like a wreck, _he noted, stepping into her room. She looked exhausted, which only confirmed his suspicions about her fainting spell. "How'r'ya feeling?"

"I'm fine" she said with a dull tone to her voice. The circles under her eyes told him another story.

Hank took her by the arm and led her to a chair by the window and motioned for her to sit down. "Div, Colonel Sheppard is good. He's going to be okay," he paused and sat down next to her. "What happened to you today?" he asked trying to prompt the conversation with her.

"I didn't have time to eat," she said simply.

"Div, I got your test results back," Hank said slowly. "There's a lot more going on here then just skipping a meal or two," he remarked reaching out to take her hand. "What's really going on?"

Before he got any answer, tears began to stream down her face.

…**~…**

Silence was the only constant in the infirmary four hours later. Only one bed was occupied in the entire room and the person lying on it wasn't sleeping. He was staring at the ceiling. Wondering. Wondering how their seemingly simple mission had gone downhill so fast and he ended up with a bullet in his gut. _Those people hardly seemed the type to be packing that kind of weaponry, _John commented mentally. _Yet, that was definitely a Genji type weapon that blasted a whole in me. _

The stillness of the room was deafening and while it should have been soothing, it only left questions. His senses were on overdrive…cognizant of the pain in his stomach, the static in the room, and the unanswered speculation on the gun. The footfall near the bed didn't go unnoticed. Sheppard trailed his eyes to the left and focused in on Dr. Lawson approaching him.

"Doc, what's the word?" John coughed out with a raspy voice. "Am I going to live?"

"You're going to live to fight another day," Hank replied with a smile. He picked the chart up from the side of the bed and glanced up at the monitors over Sheppard's head. "Based on your history … I'd classify this as a flesh wound."

"That's a flesh wound?" John grunted. "No wonder why it hurts so bad."

"You're going to be sore for awhile while things heal and don't think I haven't been warned about your tendency to not listen to doctor's orders," Hank deadpanned. He looked up and waved at someone who was just out of Sheppard's line of sight.

"Don't worry doc," Sheppard remarked. "I'll follow your orders for a couple of days at least-"

"He'll follow them as long as he needs," Divya interrupted stepping up to the side of the bed. She ran her hand up his arm to his shoulder. "I'll make sure of it Hank."

"Crap! I guess that's what I get for falling for the doctor huh?" Sheppard chuckled and then started to cough. Hank grabbed the water pitcher and poured a cup, then held it to John's lips. "Agh, thanks," he whispered settling back against the pillow.

"Okay, get some rest," Hank said hanging the chart on the side of the bed. "I'll check back with you later. Divya ..,"

"I know Hank. I promise to only stay a few minutes," she said cutting him off. She watched Hank nod and step away from the bed before looking back at Sheppard. "Get that smirk off your face. I'm serious that you'll follow all of the doctor's orders, which includes _resting _and nothing kinky."

"Okay, okay," Sheppard replied holding one hand up in surrender. "And for the record Ms. Katdara, it wasn't kinky."

"Right … I'm sure some of the details had me in a nurse's uniform giving you a sponge bath," she remarked.

"Hmmm, sponge bath yes," John said reaching for her hand. "I hadn't thought about the nurse's uniform though."

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

MSG – 7

**Month Three**

Hank stared at the data on the monitor in front of him and formulated his presentation in his head. The noise of the infirmary played out around him like a perfectly intoned march, rarely missing a beat and accompanied by the occasional laugh or shriek. The pace had become music to his ears… different from the chaotic emergency room of his past … yet welcomed in his day to day life.

Hank clicked through the data again and glanced down at his watch. He had fifteen minutes to get up to Mr. Woolsey's office for the conference call with Stargate Command. He transferred the data to a tablet and pushed back from his desk, just as Divya walked around the corner.

"Divya," Hank called out to her as she headed in the opposite direction. He was sure she was avoiding him today. "Do you have a minute for your follow up check?"

"Ah, sure," she muttered.

The look of hesitation didn't go unnoticed by Hank. He picked up her chart and headed across the room to the nearest empty bed, motioning for her to sit down. Hank went through the physical exam quickly and then sat back on the next bed to talk test results with her.

"Your iron levels are back to a normal range and your sugar levels are good. How have you been feeling?"

"Better," she replied.

"And your sessions with Dr. Goldburg?" Hank prompted even though he already knew the answer. He had strongly suggested some sessions with the base psychologist after her incident the previous month. Dr. Goldburg had given him a status report this morning and she seemed to be making good progress. The stress of her broken engagement and the damaged relationship with her parents was eating at her. Talking about it with an unbiased third party seemed to be helping. Divya's overall health and disposition were improving.

"Helping," she answered simply.

"Ah huh," Hank remarked. He knew that she knew he had spoken to Goldburg, so he decided to drop it. "Having any dizzy spells, nausea, or panic attacks that I don't know about?"

"Not that I could get away with you, Evan and John watching me like a gaggle of hawks. No dizziness or fainting spells and no nausea," Divya reported. "Truly Hank, I'm feeling much better."

"And you would tell me if you weren't?" Hank prompted her cautiously.

"Yes, Hank," she agreed reluctantly.

"Good, I want you to stay on the regiment for now. I'll check it again in a month and if the results are the same, we'll discuss a different therapy," he replied glancing at his watch. "Oh, I have to go. I have that meeting with Woolsey," Hank said picking up the tablet. "Lunch later?" he called to her walking toward his desk. He logged off his monitor as Divya talked in the background.

"I thought you were having lunch with Major Teldy," Divya remarked.

"Right," Hank chuckled. "So many women, so little time," he added as he walked out of the infirmary. Hank cruised down the corridor heading to the gate room and shook his head at her comment. He had been looking forward to lunch with Anne all morning, so how was it that just minutes before his _little _presentation could he forget about the gorgeous brunette. _I hope Divya doesn't tell Teldy I forgot, _he thought as he made his way up the steps. _Naahh… that's more Evan's style, _he added heading toward the conference room.

Twenty minutes into his spiel he could tell he was faced with a tough audience. Rodney's lip was curled and Hank could tell he was ready to go off on him at any given moment. Major Lorne and Major Rivers, both sitting in for Colonel Sheppard, had varied expressions on their faces. Hank's proposal was nothing new to them since he had consulted both over the past two weeks. However, today, Lorne looked perplexed as he mulled the idea over in his head and Rivers face was a blank slate. Only Woolsey seemed to be remotely interested in considering the idea, while Mitchell and O'Neil sat expressionless on the other side of the Stargate.

After several minutes of silence, Colonel Mitchell finally spoke up. "Are you talking about the general's golfing buddy?"

"Yes," Hank and O'Neill replied in unison.

"Oh for the love of god!" Rodney cried. "This is all about someone's golfing buddy?"

"No. This is about a patient with an incurable disease on Earth that might be saved by someone in the Pegasus Galaxy," Hank countered making eye contact with most of the room.

"Saved by someone, namely Todd, who has a questionable track record with us," Major Lorne piped in.

"He was helpful during our last encounter," Woolsey remarked.

"Wait, wait, wait," Rodney interrupted. "Yeah, he was helpful in our last joint mission, so what? The three before that were rather questionable, or did you forget he threatened to eat you?" Rodney questioned Woolsey. "Besides, after Sheppard so graciously released him and we haven't heard from him," he added.

"That isn't exactly true," Hank said looking across the room to Major Rivers.

"What? We've had contact with Todd?" McKay asked with a stunned expression on his face.

"Not contact exactly," Rivers explained. "We just know where he is. We kinda found him by accident on our last off world trip."

"And you decided not to tell anyone?" Rodney asked indignantly. He looked glared at Rivers and Lorne from across the room. "Isn't that a breach of security?"

"We filed a report with Mr. Woolsey and the Colonel," Lorne countered simply.

"Okay," Rodney replied slowing getting irritated that he was left out of the loop. "But how is Todd going to help us? Huh? He has been cured of the need to feed."

"The colonies are still reporting wraith attacks," Woolsey stated matter-o-factly.

"Three villages on M47-965 were attacked by wraith in the past month," Lorne added.

"Normal blood-sucking wraith?" Rodney asked with an incredulous expression on his face.

"Yes, Doctor McKay," Rivers retorted with annoyance. "Just the run of the mill wraith."

"Uh, I didn't think they existed anymore," Rodney replied. "I thought we had wiped them out with the Michael's vaccine."

"Apparently not," Rivers answered.

"So how exactly do you plan to proceed?" Mitchell asked from Stargate Command.

"If I'm allowed to bring the patient to Atlantis, we'll make contact with Todd and ask for his assistance…" Hank began to say with Rodney cut him off.

"What? You can't be serious! What are you just going to ask him if he knows some hungry wraith to eat your friend and then restore him?" Rodney questioned throwing his arms up in the air.

"Yes Rodney," Hank replied gruffly. "In a nut shell, that's exactly what I plan to do."

The entire room watched the color drain from McKay's face as the answer reverberated through his head.

"There is no way Sheppard is going to go for that," Rodney argued as he tried to pick his jaw up on the floor.

"We've already discussed it with the Colonel and he signed off on it," Lorne pointed out.

"Unbelievable," Rodney muttered under his breath.

"Dr. Lawson, this seems to be a somewhat unorthodox procedure, however, it's par for the course in Pegasus. No pun intended," O'Neill remarked through the link. "I'll grant you some latitude with it. As you pointed out, the worst that could happen is you kill the patient … but by the sound of it, he doesn't have much time left anyway. I'll make the necessary security arrangements for you."

"Thank you General O'Neill," Hank replied with a slight grin on his face. _That was the easy part, _Hank thought settling in a chair to discuss the logistics with the team. _Now I need to convince Boris this is the way to go. _

…_**~…**_

"Hey Divya! Hank's going back to Earth," Evan announced to the physician's assistant as he rounded the corner in the med lab. He caught Divya Katdara and Colonel Sheppard mid kiss and watched the pair step away from each other quickly. However, it didn't even faze Evan who barely skipped a beat. "Are you going with him?"

"Hank's going back to Earth?" Divya repeated sheepishly. She avoided eye contact with Evan. "Whatever for?"

"He has some appointment with Boris," Evan said pulling an apple out of his pocket. He sat down on the nearest stool and took a loud bite out of it.

"Boris?"

"Yeah, Boris. Remember him?" Evan remarked resting his elbows on the table. He took another bite of the apple and glanced in Sheppard's direction. "I thought you'd be going back with him to visit your parents."

"You didn't tell me Hank was going to Earth," Divya questioned Sheppard.

"Well, it's not exactly my place to discuss business with you," John replied defensively. "But maybe you should go visit your parents like Evan suggested."

"No," Divya retorted a little loudly. When she heard her voice echo off the wall she over explained herself. "My parents are in London and considering they haven't spoken to me in three months, I'm certain they have no desire to see me."

"That's a little harsh don't you think?" Evan replied. "They're your parents. They aren't Neanderthals."

"If they haven't spoken to you in three months, how do you know they're in London?" John asked shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe they are just hanging out in the Hamptons waiting for a chance to reconcile."

"If I go back to the Hamptons and my parents are there, they will forcibly take me to London with them," Divya argued.

"Forcibly? Come on Div … don't you think that's an exaggeration?" John questioned.

"Evan?"

"Ah no, Now that I think of it …I'm with Divya. Her parents traded some goats to marry her off," Evan replied nodding in agreement. "Trying to make amends without an armed security detail would be a really bad idea."

…**~…**

Low moans filled the cramped quarters as the two bodies participated in their silent dance. The sounds of skin on skin, rustle of clothing and the occasional chuckle echoed through the space like an out of sync cadence. The syntax was in contrast with the chaos from earlier today. The intention of the participants was clear. The lunch date was over before it even started, at least the food aspect of it. A soft suggestion and a smile was all it took to propel the couple to an alternate location, which didn't exactly include either of their quarters.

"Ouch!"

"Shit!"

"Agh, oh yeah."

"Hmmm, don't stop."

"Yes."

"Gawd you feel so good."

"Babe."

"Infirmary to Dr. Lawson."

"Shit."

"Aren't you going to get that?"

"No, it's my stalker."

"Agh, April?"

"Yeah, ummm let's not talk about her."

"Right."

Sweat dripped from their foreheads as the two wet bodies slid over each other. The moisture made finding a hand hold difficult, yet it didn't stop the action. The two braced themselves against the corner and the wall to continue their frantic tango. The game was rough and exciting and both were very near their climax. A city-wide page from Major Teldy to contact control was the crowning moment.

"Shit," Teldy cursed as the temperature kicked up a notch. She felt her body spasm around Hank's relentless thrusting and arched her back to ride through the wave.

"Ooh," Hank whispered harshly as he felt his back tighten. He quickened his pace and then froze in mid thrust. He was motionless while his seed exited abruptly from his body. Hank began to move again when he realized the pressure he was putting on Anne was causing her to come again. "You keep that up, I'm going to be hard in a second," he smiled down at her.

"That was my intention," Anne Teldy replied with a sly grin. "Just keep it down while I check in with control."

Hank watched Teldy fish her ear piece out of the pile of crumpled clothing and call in. He couldn't resist teasing her and leaned over to dance his tongue over her swollen nipple. He felt his energy growing inside. Grinding his hips against her, he watched her eyes pop open and she pulled the ear piece out of her hair.

"You're in trouble Doctor," Teldy growled seductively as she pushed up to meet his lips. The kiss started out as quick nip and morphed quickly into a deep probing match. She felt his hand squeeze her breast as he steadily stroked against her.

"What are you going to do to me?" Hank purred as he tangled his hands through her hair.

"Well, for one, report you for having sex in a hallway cubby," Anne remarked, pushing him back on his butt and straddling his legs. She grabbed his heat and lowered herself on it quickly.

"Ohh," Hank moaned as she forced him deep inside her. "That's what this corner is called?" He grabbed her breasts as they bounced in front of his face and sucked a nipple into his mouth.

"More or less," she gasped. Anne snaked a hand behind Hank's neck and pressed his head into her chest. It didn't take long for her to orgasm again. She bit her lip to hold back her squeals as the heat built up in the pit of her stomach and then released like the flood gates. "When do you get back from Earth?" she grunted as she rutted against Hank.

"In a day or two," Hank said between pants. "Maybe three."

"Any more than four and I'm cutting you off," Anne joked as she rolled off him and started to grab her clothes.

"Is that a threat?" Hank gruffly asked her as he caught her arm and rolled her over on the floor. He pinned her with his body and squeezed a nipple with his fingers. He knew damn well that she could get away from him at any moment, but was amazed that she didn't even try. His hard organ bounced against her thigh. Hank leaned down and captured her lips in his again.

"It might be," Anne whispered when they came up for air.

"Well, then …let me call your bluff," Hank replied huskily.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

MSG – 8

"Can I just say for the record that this is a really bad idea?" Rodney asked as Sheppard's team stepped out of the jumper.

"You've said it five times already," Ronon remarked.

"And no one said anything," Rodney practically wailed.

"Maybe because no one cares," Ronon grunted walking down the hatch. He hit the remote to retract the door and cloak the ship and then walked toward Sheppard and Teyla and Rivers' team leaving McKay standing alone.

"Hey guys!" Rodney yelled running after Sheppard.

"Come on Rodney, get with the program," Sheppard joked. "It'll be fun."

"When has hanging around with that albino oaf ever been fun?" Rodney grumbled trudging through the grass.

"Maybe he's turned over a new leaf," John remarked shrugging his shoulders.

It took an hour, but Sheppard managed to walk right into the hornet's nest and find their dear old friend Todd. McKay noted he didn't look too good. The man…er wraith was wrinkled, frail and really old looking. It appeared that it took all his energy to even take a breath.

"Why would I do this?" Todd huffed as he paced slowly around the small room. Sheppard had just outlined Hank's proposal and the old guy wasn't looking like he was too interested in taking part.

"Well, for starters, you owe us," Sheppard remarked flippantly.

"If my memory serves me right, I helped you during our last encounter. Technically you owe me," Todd grumbled.

"Considering that you threatened to kill Woolsey on the mission before that… you're going to owe me for quite awhile," Sheppard informed him flatly.

"And your vow to kill me if I crossed you doesn't count for anything?" Todd questioned.

"Ugh, nope," Sheppard replied. It appeared that the two were at a stale mate.

"Look, I'm sure you could benefit from some medical attention, so we could help each other out," Rodney blurted out trying to entice the ailing wraith. Ronon, Teyla and Sheppard all stared at McKay in astonishment at his outburst, but it seemed to work in their favor.

"And you think that I would just happen to know where some hungry wraith are?" Todd asked sweeping his arms open.

"We know planets in this sector have been raided recently by the wraith," Teyla stated playing with the butt of her gun.

"And rumor has it that you know who is doing it and that you might have some alliance with them that could work in our favor," John added nodding his head. "So you help us out and perhaps we can help you."

"Perhaps," Todd replied inclining his head.

…**~…**

"So, he'll help us," Woolsey stated, not in a question. He trailed his gaze from Sheppard to Lawson and back to confirm what Sheppard had just said.

"Yes," Sheppard replied. "He's in bad shape, so I spiced the deal by offering him a medical evaluation."

"Do you think that is wise?" Woolsey asked.

"He seems to still have some contacts among the wraith, so for now, yes, I thought it was warranted," Sheppard answered not backing down from Woolsey's thick stare.

"How soon will _Todd _be able to provide ah…," Woolsey stammered not sure how to discuss the blood sucking thing that Lawson needed for his experiment.

"Whenever we are ready," Sheppard replied. "He has two in the brig right now."

"Excuse me?" Woolsey guffawed.

"Apparently he just had a small battle with a couple of other factions and took a few of their minions into custody," John said calmly.

"What was he planning on doing with them?" Woolsey asked wide eyed.

"I didn't ask and frankly I don't think I want to know," John said inclining his head to the side.

"Well, okay then Dr. Lawson, you have a _go _to bring your patient to the city," Woolsey remarked. "We'll dial Earth at seventeen hundred hours."

"Major Rivers will be going with you to make the necessary security arrangements," Sheppard said, directing the comment to Hank.

"Oh, that reminds me, Dr. Fuller has been granted leave and will be going with you as well," Woolsey said with a slight smile.

"April Faa …. the geologist?" Hank replied stuttering over his words.

"Yes, she told me her parents live in the Hamptons and it was her father's birthday," Woolsey remarked with a curious expression on his face. He noticed Sheppard snickering just behind Hank's head. "Am I missing something? I thought we wanted her off base during this exercise for the patient's privacy?"

"I do, it's just …" Hank mumbled trying to figure out how to explain it. "She has… ah…"

"April has a crush on the doc," John commented.

"I don't think _crush _quite covers it," Hank muttered glancing toward Sheppard. He rolled his eyes and shook his head in disbelief.

"She's kinda hot," John said shrugging his shoulders.

"She has nightingale syndrome," Hank replied waving his arms around in frustration. "Save her life and then she'll follow you home with puppy dog eyes. She's a stalker."

"You think that's stalking?" John chuckled. "Maybe you should turn her on to McKay."

"Yes, that's stalking," Hank argued. "And trust me, I've tried. She is only interested in me and I'm not interested in her."

"That isn't stalking …. she has a crush. Real stalking is …"

"Nothing that I really want to hear about," Woolsey said interrupting the two men. "Dr. Lawson, will it be a problem if Ms. Watkins returns to the Hamptons with you?"

"Major Rivers is going with me?" Hank asked carefully.

"Yes and a couple of his men," Woolsey confirmed.

"Then no, it won't be a problem," Hank replied giving Sheppard a dirty look.

…**~…**

"Are you sure you don't want to go with him?" John asked Divya. John was standing across the lab table from her in the infirmary while she prepped some tubes for some test she was running.

"No John, don't ask me again," Divya smarted back with a hostile tone. "I need to get these tests prepped for his return and all three of the other doctors will be off base for the next forty eight hours, so I need to be here to _man the fort." _She avoided eye contact with him and moved the tubes around in the container like they were the most interesting thing in the world.

"Divya," John said slowly walking around the table. He stopped her hand in mid air and forced her to look at him. "This is the perfect time for you to make amends with your parents"

"I told you I don't want to go," Divya replied trying to keep her voice as even as possible. Looking into those green eyes of his and feeling the warmth of his skin on her arm made it impossible to keep the tears out of her eyes.

"Yes you do and you should," John said softly. "Rivers will have a security detail escort you so nothing bad will happen and Hank will be there. And when you get back tomorrow or the next day, I'll be here waiting for you." He looked into her eyes and saw a mixed bag of emotions wash over her. He didn't need to say anything else, he just pulled her into an awkward hug.

…**~…**

Hank glanced around the gate room and noticed Rivers and the three security officers were looking rather casual in their blue jeans and white tees. However, not so casual that they weren't packing some heat, which he thought was over-kill, but it was the military. He caught sight of April coming up the stairs and watched her reaction without being obvious. She walked past the Marines checking them out in her Hampton persona. Hank rolled his eyes and glanced at Rivers noticing the same expression on the younger man's face. He was about to say something when he saw Divya and Sheppard coming up the stairs from the equipment room.

"Div?" Hank questioned as she walked slowly up the stairs. "I didn't know you were coming."

"I wasn't, but someone convinced me otherwise," Divya said glancing back at John. "I only agreed because the marines would be with us."

"You honestly think your parents would make you go to London with them? Against your wishes?" he asked tilting his head to the side.

"Hank, it's my parents. They arranged a marriage for me with my childhood friend," Divya reminded him. "Strategic planning."

"Right," Hank mumbled as the gate sprang to life in front of him.

"Dr. Lawson are you ready?" Major Rivers asked Hank.

"Yeah," Hank mumbled as he stared at the big blue circle. The concept that walking through that ring of water would transport him thousands of light years back to earth in less than a few seconds still boggled his mind. While he had been to a couple of planets since arriving in Atlantis, it was his first visit back to his Earth. _And that's a lot farther than just going to the moon, _he gulped. He watched April, Divya and the marines walk through like it was no big deal and wondered why his feet weren't moving.

"Don't worry doc," Rivers joked when he saw the apprehension in Hank's face. "It will only hurt for a second."

"Thanks," Hank mumbled swallowing hard. _Suck it up Lawson, _he chided himself as he stepped into the big blue circle.

…**~…**

Hank watched Boris pace around the room digesting the information, however limited in content, about the possible cure for his condition. It was a lot to take in and Hank was hinging it on the hope that Boris trusted him enough to allow it to happen. Of course he couldn't tell him all the details because there just weren't any words to explain it. _Yeah, I want to take you to another galaxy so a blood sucking alien with super-human powers can practically eat you and then puke it all back up …which hopefully will cure your issue. _The words flooded Hank's mind and he chuckled at how ludicrous it sounded. Yet in all the simulations and research that he, Dr. Beckett, Divya and Dr. Hampton did, it seemed the most plausible idea. _And if it doesn't work, then maybe we'll learn something else. _They didn't have anything to lose and a lot to gain.

"…I need to make some arrangements," Boris said in the background pulling Hank from his thoughts. "When would we need to leave and how long would we be gone?"

"We could leave today or tomorrow and be back in a couple of days," Hank replied somewhat nervously. Again he watched Boris as he stared blankly at the shelf of books in front of him.

"That is rather quick Hank," Boris commented.

"We need to move on this Boris," Hank reaffirmed. "Your condition has deteriorated since your last physical three months ago."

"And you are sure this _treatment _will work?"

"Positively? No, but you've never been one for conventional medicine," Hank remarked remembering the whole shark embryo incident.

"Check back with me tomorrow morning Hank," Boris said quietly. "I could use a change of scenery, I suppose."

…**~…**

"So how do you think it's going with Divya?" Major Rivers asked Hank. The two were sitting in a beachside restaurant enjoying the food, a few drinks and a beautiful sunset.

"Ha," Hank grunted taking a swig of his beer. He set the bottle down on the table and chuckled. "Well, dinner must be quiet, otherwise I'm sure your men would have called you by now."

"Yeah, that's what scares me," Rivers laughed. "What if Divya's family has Mossad body guards like that Boris friend of yours?"

"Are you saying your team couldn't take them?" Hank questioned the major with a serious look on his face.

"Radar I need a sit-rep," Rivers said into his earpiece, with garnered a smirk out of Hank.

"Things are quiet sir, very very quiet. The package has given the "get me out of here" signal twice, but we decided that she needs to see it through."

"Roger that. We'll rendezvous with you at the guest house at twenty two hundred. Rivers out," Rivers picked up his beer and winked at Hank. "Well, guess you were right."

"Yeah, about Divya," Hank agreed. "Not about a curfew."

"You gotta hot date with April or something?" Rivers kidded him.

"Ha…naah. If I did, it certainly wouldn't be with April," Hank replied with a scowl.

"She's hot, but she's a complete psycho," Rivers agreed. "When she was working at SGC, I escorted the geology team on a dig. She hurt her ankle and I wrapped it up for her … and wow! She was all over me afterward. It was cool for about a week, but she's way too clingy!"

"Nightingale syndrome," Hank said nodding his head. "It's an emotional attachment to their caregiver." He stabbed a piece of steak with his fork.

"Huh," he grunted. "So that's why she gets all freaky around you docs? I call that low-self confidence. You'd think as smart as she is she'd be able to have an intelligent conversation with a person, but all she can talk about is rocks, dirt and makeup." Rivers shook his head. "Hot, smart and crazy is not a good combination in any galaxy," he added reaching for his beer.

"Agreed," Hank replied with a smile. He turned his head and saw a familiar brunette walking his way. "Oh shit," Hank muttered covering his eyes with his hand.

"What?" Rivers questioned.

"My ex is walking this way."

"Who? The brunette?" Rivers asked glancing sideways in Jill's direction. "Ex wife?"

"No, ex-girlfriend."

"She's hot."

"Is that all you think about?" Hank asked glancing up at the younger man.

"When you're stuck on a base a gazillion miles from civilization, yes, you think about it a lot. You'd be thinking about it too if you weren't dating Teldy!" Rivers joked back. He glanced up at Jill and smirked. "Who dumped who?"

"She went back to her husband," Hank replied with a grimace.

"Ouch!" Rivers mouthed. "You want me to play your lover or something?"

"Or something," Hank muttered as Jill got closer to the table.

"Hank?" she called to him. "Oh my god! What are you doing here? I haven't seen you in months!"

Hank stood from his chair and extended his hand to her cordially. He watched her take it awkwardly as if she was expecting something else. "Jill, hi I'm ah … visiting Boris," he replied plainly.

"Oh, are you still his doctor? I thought you turned your practice over to Dr. Welby?"

"Ah, no. HankMed is still HankMed. I just picked Marcus up as an associate," he added not really sure why he felt the need to tell her anything. "For the off season," he added nervously.

"Off season?" she questioned. "I thought you were sticking around. At least that's what you told me."

"Well, I had an opportunity present itself that I couldn't pass up," Hank said shoving his hands in his pocket.

"Yeah, those seem to just happen with you," Jill muttered glancing over to Rivers at the table. "Hi, I'm Jill, Hank's pseudo ex-girlfriend," she said leaning over the table to shake Rivers hand.

"Nice to meet you, Stone Rivers," Major Rivers replied standing up slightly.

"How do you know Hank? Are you a doctor or?" Jill asked accusingly.

"We're partners," Rivers replied. He flashed a sly grin in Jill's direction and arched a brow at Hank.

As much as Hank wanted to explain Rivers statement away, the stunned expression on Jill's face was priceless. Considering how she kept her marriage on the DL and the dumped him in the end for that Charley chump, she didn't really deserve a different answer. It took him a second to realize that Jill and Rivers were still talking and then Jill politely excused herself from their table. Hank sat down absent-mindly and picked up his beer bottle.

"Dude, you need to lose that lost look before you get back to the base, otherwise Teldy is going to have your ass," Rivers remarked.

"Anne has nothing to be worried about," Hank muttered taking another drink of beer. "Your first name is Stone? I didn't realize you had one.

"Doesn't everyone …Stone was my mother's maiden name," Rivers commented. "And you're changing the subject. I think I've been spending my summers on the wrong side of the country! April develops an undying affection for you, you have a summer fling with a married woman, Divya's parents try to marry her off to some guy she doesn't love and you and your brother spend the summer in a kick ass mansion with a tycoon."

"Well, that's the Hamptons," Hank shrugged.

…**~…**

The guest house was dark and quiet when Divya and her security detail made it back. Divya dropped her purse on the couch and wandered through the living area to the terrace. She sat heavily on a chair and pulled her sweater around her shoulders. Saying goodbye was never easy. Her father was still not happy with her. The decision to not marry Raj and then to take off with the military all were a disgrace in his mind. Her mother seemed more forgiving in her muted sort of way. If it hadn't been for her armed detail, there was no doubt in Divya's mind that her father would have insisted she go somewhere with him. He still had plans for her that didn't include anything that she wanted.

Divya sighed when she heard the familiar footfall behind her. Hank Lawson was her John Sheppard when they were in the Hampton's. She felt him sit next to her on the chair and noticed he said nothing. Her emotions were suffocating her and the conflict in her heart was causing confusion like no other. She couldn't even verbalize what she what feeling and she knew that Hank understood. _I don't know how he understands because I barely get it, _she thought as she turned and looked at him.

"Will we be leaving tomorrow?" she asked trying to hold her voice as steady as she could.

"Yes," Hank replied simply.

"And Boris is ready?"

"He will be," Hank commented. "Are you ready?"

"I was ready three hours ago," she whispered.

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

MSG – 9

"Can I just say for the record this is a really bad idea?" Rodney gasped as they trudged through the tall grass towards Todd's compound.

"You can," Teyla replied.

"Okay," Rodney said slowly. "So why isn't anybody listening?"

"Because just like last time, nobody cares," Ronon replied smacking at the grass with his knife.

"Yeah, I get that," Rodney grumbled as they turned the corner at the edge of the compound. "Oh, I hate this feeling," Rodney whispered under his breath as the foursome was faced with a handful of wraith guards.

"Todd is expecting us," Sheppard said to the lead guy. The 'thing' said nothing and then moved out of the way to let Sheppard's team pass.

"Guess everybody is acknowledging that his name is Todd," Rodney commented as he followed Sheppard toward the buildings.

"Or maybe they know we were coming," Ronon grunted as he brought up the rear.

"Maybe," Rodney said looking back at him. "Or maybe they are thinking about ways to eat us."

"Since when are you afraid of the wraith?" Teyla questioned Rodney as they walked into building where Todd and his crew were hiding.

"Since I thought they were gone and found out different," Rodney panted. He looked around nervously at the hulking subordinates standing around the entrance to the nest.

Within minutes they were standing in Todd's chamber as he pondered the offer again. Rodney was sure Todd wasn't going to go through with it because he didn't seem too convinced there was anything in it for him. _And technically there isn't,_ Rodney reminded himself as he shifted the weight on his feet. _Some medical attention? Right, he probably only agreed because he thought Jennifer was still in the city, _Rodney mused quietly. The thought of Jennifer having a crush on that guy sickened him, yet she did. She had admitted after Atlantis crash landed on Earth. She had thought it was a harmless funny, but to Rodney it was just another jab in his side about his lack of masculinity. _That's what she said when she dumped me. I wasn't man enough for her. She always went for the brutes … Ronon, Todd…_. _._

"Pay attention McKay," Ronon growled as he grabbed the back of Rodney's shirt and dragged him down the corridor.

"What? What'd I miss?" Rodney yelped as the foursome followed Todd through the maze of tunnels in the ship.

"Everything," Ronon informed him.

"He's going for it?" Rodney guffawed as he tripped over his own feet and then ran into the back of Teyla.

"Yes Rodney," Sheppard replied coarsely as they came around the corner to a group of cells.

Rodney blinked twice and practically choked on his spit. Two of the cells housed wraith warlords from opposing factions. He watched as Todd's henchmen released one of the guys and locked him in shackles. Rodney wondered if this guy knew what was going on, if he was compliant on what they wanted him to do or if Todd was just going to force him to do it under the guise that they would kill him if he didn't. In the end it didn't matter, the guy looked hungry and if he was in the warlord's shoes, he'd be hard pressed to just skip a meal.

…**~…**

"Did you have any security problems bringing him through?" Mr. Woolsey asked leaning against the rail of the surgical suite.

Hank, Woolsey, Majors Rivers and Lorne were in the observation deck looking down into the surgical suite that housed an unconscious Boris. The security arrangements included Hank sedating Boris during transport from the house to the Daedalus to Stargate Command and through the gate. The whole trip lasted less than an hour. Dr. Phillips and Divya were attending to Boris while he came out of the sedation. The plan was that he would stay in the suite during his _treatment _and then if all went well, the reverse trip would be completed under sedation. Total time on Atlantis, less than seventy two hours.

"None," Rivers replied flatly. "Everything went off without a hitch and ah… April should be returning to the base in a few days. If everything goes according to plan, they'll pass in the night, and she'll never be the wiser." Rivers glanced in Hank's direction and winked.

"Great," Mr. Woolsey replied absent-mindedly not hearing whatever Rivers said. "Well, Colonel Sheppard has informed me they are enroute with the subjects."

"Subjects?" Hank repeated quizzically leaning into the table. "How many subjects?"

"Four actually," Major Lorne replied slowly. "It was a packaged deal."

"It might be prudent to study up on Todd's medical history before they arrive," Woolsey remarked. "Colonel Sheppard advised he was in need of a doctor."

Hank was still hung up on the _four. _The room was prepared for one, not four. And while he suspected that this Todd character would be present as well, he hadn't exactly reviewed his medical details in full. "Can we go back to the number?"

"Two for security," Lorne replied making light of the number.

"Todd's security?"

"Eh, something like that," Lorne commented with a chuckle. "Maybe ours. You never know with that guy."

"Great," Hank muttered looking down at the surgical suite. He caught Divya looking up at him with an expression that said _I need to talk to you. _ "Okay, if you'll excuse me, I have some prep to do."

It only took a minute to navigate through the maze from the observation deck to the infirmary floor. Hank walked down the corridor and passed a med tech looking for a sign off on a chart. Hank perused the electronic chart, pressed his thumb print to the tablet and entered his pin. _Science, _he thought as he handed the chart back to the tech and walked to the suite. He caught up with Divya just as she was exiting.

"How is our patient?" Hank asked taking the chart out of her hand.

"He's fine. He's vitals are strong and he should be waking up in a few minutes," Divya replied.

"Did you take blood?" Hank asked as he reviewed the data on the tablet.

"Dr. Phillips is getting the samples now," she remarked.

"I need the kitchen sink on it," he said handing the tablet back to her. Hank looked at Divya quietly for a second and observed the tired look in her eyes. "Did you get any sleep last night?"

"A little," Divya replied avoiding eye contact with him.

Hank looked at his watch and shoved his hands in his pants pocket. "Why don't you take a break and I don't know … take a nap, go for a walk … relax," Hank stammered.

"No Hank. I need to stay busy and keep my mind of things," Divya protested.

"Divya, no. We have a lot of things going on the next two days and I need you at the top of your game," he said to her in a brotherly scolding. "You look like hell. You're eyes are puffy and I don't need to be a doctor to see that your exhausted."

"Hank."

"Divya," Hank said a little more sternly. He took the tablet out of her hands and handed it to Dr. Phillips as he exited the room. "No arguments," he added holding his finger up to quiet her next rebuttal.

…**~…**

The security detail marched _Burt _(as Rodney named him) and the two guards down the corridor of Atlantis to the brig. The guards were put in one detention area and Burt had his very own cell. The appearance of Wraith on Atlantis made everyone nervous, but all the usual safety precautions had been taken and even a few that weren't usual.

Sheppard, Teyla and Ronon personally walked Todd to the infirmary and waited as Dr. Hampton and Dr. Mercer ran a series of tests on him to check his current condition. Mercer was the only doctor on-board Atlantis that had previous knowledge of the wraith and he was surprised to see Todd in such horrible condition. When Todd argued about the type of test the doctors wanted to run, Sheppard yipped at his ankles to keep him in line. It didn't really take much however, Todd seemed tired and hungry in a way that Sheppard had never seen before and that truly concerned him.

Just like not seeing Divya around the infirmary concerned him. He knew Hank and Rivers were back and Boris was resting just down the hall. But the absence of his _woman _for lack of better term was really starting to bug him.

"Hank!" John blurted out when he caught Hank buzzing down the far hallway. "Everything go okay in the Hampton's?" he asked making small talk. He didn't want to seem too obvious asking about Divya straight out.

"She's in her room," Hank said seeing right through his smoke screen.

"Huh?"

"She didn't have a good night and I told her to take a break," Hank replied simply.

"Ah," Sheppard replied. "The parental dinner didn't go too well?"

"Apparently not," Hank sighed. "She was pretty upset and not in the mood for small talk. So keep that in mind when you see her." Hank excused himself and walked toward a bank of computers to work on the Boris plan.

…**~…**

John hesitated outside the door. There were about fifteen different scenarios flying through his head and all filled with a variety of outcomes. A few were in his favor, but most of them were not. How he of all people could be blessed with an exotic Indian goddess wanting to share her life with him still baffled him. Yet here he was at her door wanting nothing more than to hold her in his arms. Before he had a chance to ring the bell, the door slid open and Divya was standing on the other side looking very annoyed.

"How did you know I was standing out here?" he asked with a perplexed expression on his face.

"How do you think?" she replied flatly.

"Evan told you I was coming?" John supplied stepping into the room.

"Dr. Phillips," she said pulling off her ear piece. "He was giving me an update on the sly and then mentioned that you had just been talking to Hank."

"Ah, well, he didn't tell me anything other than you didn't get much sleep," John replied walking across the room to the desk. He leaned against the side of it and crossed his arms at his chest.

"There isn't a lot to tell," she said barely moving from the door.

"Well, did you see your girlfriends?" John asked casually.

"Yes, I saw both Saree and Janel. We had coffee downtown."

"Did they wonder where you had been?"

"Somewhat. I told them HankMed was working on a short term contract with the military," she replied walking toward him finally. "And that I would be back in the Hamptons for the summer season."

"You told them that?" John questioned suddenly feeling a little hurt that she would actually leave him in May.

"Yes. That was the agreement Hank made with General O'Neill," Divya said.

"Yeah, well, I know, I just thought …," John stammered feeling really stupid.

"I'm not leaving forever John," she said running her hands across his arms. "It's just for the summer."

"Which is our busiest time!" he argued defensively.

"In Pegasus where any number of planets are in their winter season?" Divya commented with a raised eyebrow. "I smell as ruse."

John chuckled and dropped his arms to the edge of the desk. "As in ruse wine? I have some in my room. We could drink it later by candlelit," he teased.

"Ha, ha," Divya fake laughed with a smile.

John noticed the smile on her lips but her eyes looked dull and tired. He reached out for her hand and pushed off the desk. "Come lay with me, I've had a rough morning," he said leading her over to the bed. She didn't resist. When they were cuddled around each other on the bed, he began to massage the back of her neck. After a couple minutes of silence passed, John noticed that Divya had drifted off to sleep.

…**~…**

"Where's Hank and Divya?"

Rodney McKay looked up from his lunch tray just as Evan Lawson dropped his tray down on the table across from him. Rodney watched wordlessly as Evan settled himself in the chair and rearranged his food.

"How am I supposed to know?" Rodney asked picking up his turkey sandwich and taking a bite.

"You know everything don't you?" Evan commented. He stabbed at his macaroni and cheese and shoved a huge forkful in his mouth. "That's what you're always telling me," he added after he chewed the noodles a little.

"Yeah, well, I do about most things ... except that I don't know where Divya is. I haven't seen her all day. Hank is in the infirmary with that Boris dude," Rodney answered taking another bite of the sandwich.

"Boris?" Evan repeated as he continued to eat his mac and cheese. He shoveled another forkful of it in his mouth and then grabbed for his carton of milk.

"Yeah, we brought the wraith back this morning, the one that's going to eat him."

Rodney's comment caused Evan to spew milk and noodles across the table in front of him. He started coughing uncontrollably which attracted the attention of nearly all of the mess hall.

"Choke much?" Rodney asked nonchalantly. Evan's outburst didn't stop him from eating his lunch. Rodney was starving, he stayed up late and then missed breakfast before the mission. The power bar he ate in the jumper hardly did him justice. He looked up at Evan when the man didn't answer and noticed he was holding his hand to his throat.

"Oh my god! Get a medic!" Rodney screamed pointing at Evan across from him. The sight of someone choking paralyzed Rodney in his seat. "Lawson's choking!"

It propelled Major Teldy at the next table into action, however. The brunette female marine officer jumped from the table and pulled Evan out of his seat. She wrapped her arms around him and gave him four quick abdominal thrusts to dislodge the stuck food from his throat. She performed the maneuver three times before Evan slumped in her arms and she lowered him to the floor. She immediately went through the paces of ABC, airway, breathing, circulation.

"Is he dead?" Rodney screamed over the top of the table. "He's dead! I killed him."

"Starting CPR," Teldy announced aloud as she began compressions. Another Marine knelt at Evan's head ready to perform breaths when Teldy completed her cycle of thirty compressions.

"Checking the mouth for obstruction," the male marine stated. "Nothing visible," he added before attempting two breaths through the face mask.

Teldy continued her compressions just as Hank and two medics pulled up with a gurney. Hank prepped the portable suction and waved Anne off as he went to work to pull the offending macaroni noodles from Evan's throat.

"Try to ventilate again," Hank instructed the medic kneeling next to him at Evan's head. He grabbed his stethoscope and listened for breath sounds as the medic attached a bag to the face mask and squeezed the bag a couple of times. He knuckle rubbed Evan in the chest. "Evan? Evan can you hear me? Let's get him on the gurney," Hank said looking up at Teldy, the male marine and the extra medic.

Rodney watched as the four roll Evan onto a long board and move him to the gurney. The entourage wheeled him out of the mess hall, and as if the incident never happened, the entire room went back to eating their lunch. Rodney fell back into his chair and shook his head. He stared at his tray and tried to figure out what had just happened in front of him. _I killed my assistant, _he contemplated quietly. He watched wordlessly as one the mess hall techs cleared Evan's tray from the table and he looked back at his tray.

_And I'm still hungry, _he decided as he picked up his sandwich.

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

MSG – 10

The hollow pit burning in his stomach did nothing to belay the fear that there was something seriously wrong with his brother. This whole Pegasus Galaxy thing had him on edge since they were dumped off by Daedulas months ago. The concept that he could visit another _planet _or even Earth in a matter of just a few seconds was a bit odd, even though he had done it a handful of times. Now Evan lay before him unconscious and, like Dr. McKay, Hank felt powerless to do anything about it. _This is why family doesn't treat family, _Hank reminded himself as he forced himself back into the game.

"Evan!" Hank yelled in his brother's ear as he knuckled rubbed his sternum. The second time was the charm as Evan's eyes popped open and his mouth formed the shape of an o before his voice rasped out a loud protest.

"Ow!" Evan grumbled sticking his coated tongue out of his mouth.

A wave of relief hit Hank like a flood. He looked back at the med tech and motioned to her to get some water before turning his attention back to his brother.

"Easy killer," Hank commented pushing his brother back down on the bed. "Just relax."

"What happened?' Evan squeaked out. He rubbed his hand across his chest and grimaced at the bruising.

"Other than you trying to shovel food down your throat without chewing?" Hank half joked. It really wasn't a laughing matter, but it seemed to ease the tension Hank was feeling.

"I choked? I could have died!"

"Luckily for you, you didn't because there were at least ten people in the mess hall certified in CPR," Hank commented just as the med tech came back with a glass of water. Hank took the cup from her and held it to Evan's lips while he drank a few sips.

"My chest is killing me," Evan moaned.

"Yeah, it's going to be sore for a few days," Hank said. He put on the stethoscope and listened to Evan's chest for a few seconds.

"What were you doing anyway?" Hank asked knowing that there wasn't any explanation for what had happened. People choke everyday for no good reason, his brother was no exception.

"Eating my lunch," Evan exclaimed leaning back against the pillow. He looked into Hank's eyes. "Truly I was just in the mess hall to eat my lunch. McKay made me choke."

"Dr. McKay made you choke?" Hank repeated not understanding.

"Yeah, I had just put a forkful in my mouth when McKay said that Boris was in the city and some vampire guy was going to eat him."

Hank nodded and glanced over at Dr. Phillips as he passed by the bed. _So it's true, you can't keep a secret in this city, _he thought as he tried to minimize the Boris visit. "I'm just trying out a treatment for his illness," he said plainly. He couldn't really get into it more, but knew that Evan would get it … even if he was a gossip monger.

"But letting one of those albino vamps eat him?" Evan guffawed. "I've heard the stories Hank. Those things have no mercy!"

"And their bodies excrete an enzyme that has healing properties," Hank argued.

"So…oh, wait," Evan rambled. "It's not really going to eat Boris then right?"

"Why are you so worried about how I treat Boris?" Hank asked his brother directing the conversation elsewhere.

"I'm just concerned about _my summer gig _Hank … MSG part three!"

"Part three? What happened to parts one and two?"

"MSG one was your short term stint as JANK, a.k.a _my summer guy, _MSG two is Atlantis _My seasonal gig," _Evan explained.

"Ah, that explains it," Hank nodded. "You should rest for another hour and then you're free to go back to whatever you were doing … I'd just avoid eating for a while." Hank said walking away from the questions his brother had on the tip of his tongue.

…**~…**

John Sheppard ran his fingertips down the side of Divya's face and kissed her forehead lightly. He watched her eyelids flutter open and her eyes slowly focus on the pillow in front of her.

"Hey," he whispered as she looked up at him.

"Hmmm, how long was I asleep?" she asked stretching her back like a cat.

"About three hours," John said glancing at his watch.

"Three hours? John, I have so much work to do," she said struggling to uncoil herself from the sheet and his arms. "Why didn't you wake me?" She stared at him with a look that could melt ice.

"Because you were drooling on my chest and you looked so, I dunno, beautiful," John offered not backing down from her.

"Are you trying to get yourself off the hook?" Divya asked.

"What exactly am I on the hook for?" John asked getting up off the bed.

"For letting me sleep so long," she replied. She finally untangled her legs from the sheets and stood up from the bed.

"Yes, letting you sleep. Well, see, as the military leader of the base, it's my job to take care of people within my command and seeing how tired and cranky you were, I was obligated to let you sleep," John said with his signature ease.

"I am not in your chain of comm…."

"Ah, ah, ah," John interrupted waving his finger in front of her. "You're a member of the expedition which puts your welfare directly in my hands … and I'm your boyfriend, so that makes me doubly responsible." He watched a smile creep across her face and relaxed slightly.

"You're not my boyfriend," she snarked softly. "And I was not cranky."

John stepped around to her side of the bed and pulled her into a hug. The boyfriend comment didn't even faze him. "Hank said you were a grouch and you were a little short with me so my professional opinion was that you needed a nap." He looked down into her dark eyes and held her gaze for a moment. "You hungry? You should probably refuel before you have to spend the entire night in the infirmary with Hank's little experiment."

"Yeah," she replied reaching up to brush her lips against his. "I am famished."

"For what?" John chuckled as he caught her lips in a deep seductive kiss. The only answer she gave him was a sinister laugh.

…**~…**

Activity in the infirmary was in full swing at twenty three hundred. Hank, Divya and the rest of the medical staff dodged around each other as they prepared the final items for the test, which was upon them.

"Doc, we're ready to collect the sample from Burt," Major Lorne announced walking into the infirmary.

Hank looked up from his computer and glanced to the work station across from him where Todd was sitting. They made eye contact and Hank tilted his head in frustration. "We've hit a snag," he announced looking back at Lorne.

"Why does that not surprise me," Lorne remarked tapping his ear piece. "Colonel Sheppard please report to the infirmary."

"I'm not sure that the Colonel needs to be here for it," Hank remarked with a confused expression on his face.

"He was waiting for us in the brig," Lorne explained.

"Ah," Hank grunted.

"Maybe he should bring _Burt _with him when he comes," Todd grumbled hoarsely.

"Why?" Lorne asked.

"Because we need for him to feed on the patient before we can take the sample," Todd informed him. "Then I can properly produce the antigen."

"You can't do that with the samples we've already taken?" Lorne questioned.

"Well, we could, but it would take a lot of manipulating of the serum," Hank explained. "Todd thought it would be better if we could see how the patient's blood interacts with Burt's physiology before we proceed."

"Can't you just mix their blood to see that?" Lorne posed.

"Not effectively due to the enzyme the wraith fuse into the human system as they are feeding," Todd informed him.

"Okay," Lorne replied slowly taking it all in. "I'm not sure if the Colonel is going to like it," he added quietly.

"What am I not going to like?"

--!--

_Information overload, _Sheppard thought running his hand across his brow. He stared at the computer monitor in front of him and exhaled slowly. It made sense to him, sort of. Having been a victim of a wraith feeding and restoration, John certainly got the premise. _I felt a thousand times better after Todd gave my life back, _John reminded himself.

He wasn't really in a position to say no to Hank. Sheppard _was _the person that had suggested it in the first place, although at the time he wasn't really sure it would work. Yet the idea spurred further research by Hank and Dr. Beckett on Earth and brought them to this moment.

"Hank can I speak to you?" John said inclining his head toward the office. He walked into the room in front of Hank and turned around just as Hank shut the door. "Does the patient have any idea how painful this is going to be?" John asked Lawson without mincing words. He rubbed his hand across his chest as the memory of the burn flickered through his mind.

"Dr. Beckett discussed it with him on the last link up with Earth," Hank remarked. "He got rather graphic, so I think the patient has the right expectations."

"And you're comfortable with starting the procedure without Beckett here?" John asked just to confirm with Hank that he was ready to go. There wasn't any rush really. Whether they got the sample now or in six hours, it didn't matter. Burt wasn't going anywhere, Boris couldn't leave and wasn't in danger of dying in the next eight hours and Todd was completely at their mercy.

"Yes."

"Hank, I'm serious…this isn't a needle stick. The feeding is going to burn and hurt like hell. And yeah, maybe it's going to only be three or four seconds, it's going to be the longest four seconds of Boris's life, however long or short his life is going to be," John informed him flatly. "I know, I've lived it."

"And you told me that when you were restored you were healthier than before," Hank reminded him.

"I'm not denying that," John said. "For the record I'm not against this … idea. I just want to make sure you're comfortable to take this step without Beckett here."

"I'm ready," Hank said walking back to the door. "Do you want to bring Burt here?"

"I'll have the detail bring him to the surgical suite," John said nodding his head. "And I'll be there the whole time in case something goes wonky."

"Good." Hank nodded. "I probably need that," Hank finally conceded as he opened the door.

"Well, this is Pegasus Galaxy medicine," John replied following him out of the office.

…**~…**

Four point three seconds. Four point three long seconds. Four point three agonizing seconds. Hank could barely erase the memory from his mind. He had seen some stock security footage showing a few feedings and listened to Beckett's and Sheppard's accounts on exactly what was going to happen, but in the end, he wasn't prepared. As a doctor he took an oath to do no harm. If someone would have told him a year ago he would teeter on the fine line that defined harm and no harm, he would have laughed in their face. Yet today he did exactly that and before this whole thing was over would need to do it two more times.

Boris survived it like a champ. He barely flinched when Burt latched on. An eerie low moan escaped his lips less than two seconds later and then it was done. Burt, under heavy guard and threat of getting killed by Sheppard's gun, stepped back and gave the room a sinister, blood-filled laugh.

Hank looked over at Boris resting on the bed next to him. He looked older, more wrinkled than a few days ago. His stats were good. _Considering, _Hank reminded himself. He was still a little freaked about how the feeding went down. _Although what was I thinking? It wasn't like Sheppard didn't try to warn me, _he thought just as Divya walked up.

"Here is the blood sample from _Burt,_" she said hanging him the vial.

Hank took the vial and then stepped out into the hallway. "Did you have any problem getting it?"

"Not exactly," she replied. "He was very compliant with several guns pointed at his head."

"How about his stats?"

"Todd said that he was fine and since I don't exactly have a point of reference, I just took him at his word," Divya replied. "How is Boris?"

"Resting," Hank replied. He waved her out of the doorway. "The first treatment was a little intense," he said in a whisper.

"Colonel Sheppard said it would be rough," Divya reminded him.

"Yeah, I guess I just wasn't expecting …," his voice trailed off and he sighed heavily. "I don't know what I was expecting."

"You and I treated survivors from two worlds last month," Divya commented.

"I know we did, but seeing the after math and just wondering about what happened is a lot different than actually seeing it happen," Hank remarked.

"You would have never made it as a paramedic," Divya concluded taking the vial of the wraith blood out of his hand. "I'll run the _kitchen sink_ on this."

Hank stared at her with a miffed expression on his face. "What's that supposed to mean?" he muttered as he followed her into the infirmary.

"You've been spoiled by sterile hospital rooms and the clean concierge's medicine," Divya commented as she headed toward the lab.

"It gets messy in the emergency room," Hank argued with her, following her like a puppy.

"But it is worse in the field Hank," Divya said as she stopped at the work bar. She set the sample down and began to prep the slides. "You need to stop thinking that Atlantis is a floating emergency room."

"But it is a floating emergency room," he countered and then nodded his head in agreement. "In a way," he added.

"To me, Atlantis is a big ambulance and our travels to other worlds are dispatches by the fire department. We never know what we are going to find or how exactly we are going to deal with it," she said. "Sometimes it's ugly in the field, but we still need to run head on into it."

Hank contemplated her words for a second. "So in other words, you think I'm getting soft," Hank remarked. He watched as she tried to contain a smile unsuccessfully.

"Perhaps," she finally admitted.

"Seriously? You think I'm getting soft?" Hank repeated with a stunned expression on his face.

"It's nothing you can't work on Hank," Divya replied frankly. She struggled with her facial expression for a second and then broke out in laughter. "I'm sorry," she practically snorted into her palm.

Hank stared as her as he processed what had just happened. It was great to see Divya laugh again. "You know what I think?"

"Hmm?" Divya mumbled between the giggles.

"I'm going to quote Evan … which almost scares me, but this is the first time in a long time that I've seen a genuine smile on your face," he commented. "I think this whole Atlantis trip is the best thing that has happened to you … us," Hank commented. "Oh course, a certain member of the military might have something to do with your happiness."

Another smile crept across Divya's face. "I'm not the only one that is benefiting from military intervention," she reminded him.

TBC


	11. Chapter 11

MSG – 11

"Dr. Lawson please report to the infirmary."

The words echoed in his ear as Hank jogged down the corridor from his room to the medical bay. He slid around the corner just as Dr. Beckett stood up from the work station.

"The antigen is ready, Dr. Lawson," Carson informed him.

"Okay," Hank remarked remembering how this was all going to work. "Let's go over this again. We're going to inject Burt with the antigen now and then in an hour he'll…" Hank's voice trailed off and he looked around the room trying to find the words on the walls or medical gear.

"Feed on the patient taking him to point zero," Beckett finished the thought for him. "Then he'll restore the patient and we'll capture a new blood sample in twelve hours from both." Beckett crossed his arms at his chest and looked at Lawson with a quizzical expression. "Are you okay doctor?"

"Yeah," Hank muttered. He blinked his eyes to bring it all back into focus. "It's just been a long night. Reminds me of sleeping in the on call room."

"Aye," Beckett chuckled. "I've had a few nights like that myself," he said. "A strong cup of coffee will take care of that. Divya just made a fresh pot."

"Yeah, maybe that's what I need," Hank said heading over to the coffee station. He poured himself a cup of the brew and dumped some cream into it. "Dr. Beckett, have you seen a feeding?" Hank asked tentatively.

"Yes, lad," Beckett replied. "Quite appalling thing it is, nothing you'd see back on Earth."

"Yeah, that's an understatement," Hank grunted under his breath.

"It's part of the advantage of being on another world," Beckett continued barely skipping a beat. "The wraith have survived for centuries so it stands to reason that they have ways to combat disease and viruses."

"Too bad they aren't so willing to share the knowledge openly," Hank grumbled. He stuck his nose into the cup to avoid Beckett's questioning glare.

"What do ye mean Doctor?" Carson questioned. "Are you having second thoughts?"

"Ah, not exactly," Hank mumbled. He took another drink of the coffee and then looked at Carson. "Okay, after seeing a glimpse of what a feeding is … maybe. Maybe it falls under the umbrella of do no harm."

"You need to get that thought right out of your head, Dr. Lawson," Beckett scolded him. "The wraith are a ruthless species that have no regard for human life other than the main course at their dinner table. You aren't doing anyone harm. You're saving your patient's life."

"By letting a ruthless species feed on him," Hank repeated. He had a lot of questions and no answers that made any sense to him at this minute.

"No son, you are infusing the patient with an antigen that will cure the pathogen that has flooded his system," Becket replied flatly. "That is the only way you can think about it."

"I know that, but I'm still causing our patient … pain," Hank remarked slowly.

"Every medical treatments causes some degree of pain," Beckett reminded him.

Hank nodded and took another sip of coffee. Beckett was right. Hank was over-reacting. This whole treatment idea was his idea and it was the best chance Boris had. _It's the only chance Boris has. _He looked at his watch and sighed. _It's now or never. _ "Well, then let's get this thing started," Hank said setting his cup down.

…**~…**

The next few hours went by quickly, probably a little too quickly for Hank's taste, and it was a double edged sword. The ominous growling of the wraith as he drained the life out of Boris and the defenseless screams from his patient would be forever seared into his mind. The scientific aspect of the feeding and recovery amazed the hell out of him. Despite being the most appalling thing he had ever witnessed, Hank was riding on an endorphin high like no other.

Six hours later, Boris was resting comfortably in the surgical suite, looking younger than he had in years. The wraith, Burt, was storming around his cell completely ticked off at the world. Todd was working on some calculations with Beckett in the infirmary lab and Hank was stretched out in his chair, feet up on the desk catching a few minutes of shut eye.

"Knock knock."

Hank rolled his head to the side and peeked out of one eye at the female in the doorway. "Hey," he mumbled when he realized it was his woman.

"I brought you some fresh freeze dried Starbucks instant coffee," Teldy said with a smile. She held up the steaming cup. "With milk and sugar, just how you like it."

"Ah, great," Hank grunted dropping his legs from the desk top and sitting up in the chair. He watched Anne walk to the desk and hand him the cup. The first sip hit his tongue and the rich sensation of a great cup of coffee woke him immediately. "Ah, you have no idea how good that makes me feel," he muttered holding the cup just under his nose so the vapors teased his senses.

"A cup of coffee makes you feel that good?" Teldy said walking behind him. "I can't do anything to trump that?" she asked. She ran her hands lightly across his shoulders and began to massage the knots in his neck.

"I said the coffee makes me feel good, that … ah…. oooo," he moaned as the tension he had been holding started to melt away. "That is great."

"You're not just saying that are you?" Anne asked with a sly grin.

"Are you kidding? You could probably kill me with a paper clip," Hank chuckled. He leaned into the desk as Teldy started to work lower on his shoulders and back. "Ah, hmmm, don't stop."

"I have no plans on doing that," she whispered huskily in his ear. "This is all just foreplay," she added as her brown hair fell loosely around her shoulders and brushed the sides of his neck.

A shiver rattled through Hank's body and he felt himself reacting to her. He didn't exactly have time for anything intimate right now, but he could make time. There was always that small closet cubbie in the corner of his office. The space was barely big enough for one, but it wouldn't take long for the two of them to get connected enough to conserve space. He leaned his head back to rest between her breasts and ran his hand over his growing erection. That lasted all of two seconds when Anne smacked him on the back of the head.

"Foreplay for _later, _Dr. Lawson," she chuckled. "Geez, rub up against a guy and his mind goes right for the gutter." She walked around the desk and headed for the door.

"Hey, that's all I get?" Hank guffawed as she walked away.

"Yeah, well now that you went and ruined it," she laughed. "In case you didn't notice, I'm on duty and going off world in," she glanced at her watch, "fifteen minutes."

"What I had in mind wouldn't take fifteen minutes," Hank offered.

"Yeah, well, I have a briefing with Woolsey in about one minute," she replied with a smile. Teldy fumbled with her hair, pulling it back, into a pony tail. "And I wouldn't be bragging if you can finish in a minute," she commented walking into the hall.

Hank watched her go and willed his erection to behave itself. He picked up the coffee cup and inhaled the aroma before talking another sip. "Sometimes a good cup of coffee is better than sex," he conceded aloud.

…**~…**

Boris was sleeping when Hank walked into the surgical suite to check on him. Divya and Dr. Phillips were staring at a computer screen near the end of the bed and looked up at him when he entered. Divya downloaded the most recent vitals onto a tablet and handed it to him.

"His vitals are good," she commented as he took the tablet from her.

Hank stared at the data in front him. Divya was correct in her assessment that his stats were good, in fact they were better than good. The anomalies that plagued Boris' system just hours ago weren't present on any of the current readings. _The real test will be in the blood, _Hank thought clicking through the screens. "Divya, draw blood and do a full work up on it," he said glancing up at her.

"I take it that it's time to collect a sample from our guest?" Divya remarked. She walked around the bed to prep the vial and the collection kit.

"Yes," Hank remarked. "Dr. Phillips have a security detail escort you. He wasn't very happy when I was down there a few hours ago."

"That's an understatement Dr. Lawson," Phillips grumbled as Divya handed him the collection gear that he needed. "But, I'm always up for a challenge," he added as he left the suite.

Hank chuckled at the comment, yet never once wished to be trading places with the young resident. Delegating was one of the advantages of being the head of the department. The workload at Atlantis didn't let Hank get away with passing off the dirty work all the time, but occasionally rank had its privileges. He turned his attention back on the tablet when he noticed Boris' fingers twitch. He trailed his gaze up into the eyes of his friend and smiled.

"Hey," he said softly, "how're you feeling?" Hank glanced over to Divya to check her progress with the blood samples and noticed she was just filling the first tube.

Boris coughed and blinked a few times. "My chest is very much sore," he muttered. He lifted his right hand to his brow and rubbed his fingers across his eyes. "My vision is a bit blurry."

Hank pulled a flashlight out of his pocket and flicked the light into Boris' eyes to check his pupils. Both eyes constricted albeit a little slower than Hank would have liked. "Follow my finger," he said as he put Boris through the paces. "We'll continue to monitor that," he said to both Boris and Divya. He stowed the flashlight back in his pocket. "But it should clear up in a few hours," he remarked trying to downplay it to his patient.

"And my chest?"

"The feeding marks will heal on their own in a few days," Hank informed him. "There's going to be some bruising and tenderness for a while." He looked over to Divya and watched as she finished marking the final tube. She motioned for Hank to hand her the tablet and started to fill in the blanks as Hank and Boris chatted. "How do you feel otherwise? Any muscle cramping?" Hank prompted the older man.

"None. I'm still experiencing the odd tingling sensation and I have a bit of a headache," he replied closing his eyes.

"The tingling is to be expected," Hank assured him. He looked at his watch to check the time. "Let's dial down the dose on the cocktail," Hank said to Divya on the other side of the bed. "You might be experiencing a bit of a medicinal hangover which could be causing the headache, so Divya will adjust the ratios a bit and it should even things out."

"Tell Hank, Dr. Phillips or me immediately if the pain gets worse or you have other symptoms. Especially any muscle contractions," Divya reinforced to him. "You should rest now," Divya commented. "In about a hour, we're going to get you up and walking, so you need to conserve your strength."

Boris opened one eye and glanced in Divya's direction and then over at Hank who shrugged his shoulders.

"You heard the doctor," Hank said with a smile.

"Yes Divya," Boris grumbled. He relaxed his shoulders into the mattress. "However resting isn't my favorite pastime," he added.

"You'll be back to your normal self soon enough and be wishing you would have taken more naps," Hank said with a smirk. "I'll check on you in an hour."

…**~…**

"What's the patient's prognosis?" McKay asked Dr. Lawson.

One day had passed since Hank and Dr. Beckett attempted the radical treatment for Boris' degenerate disease. Todd and Burt had returned to their ship. Divya was preparing Boris for his return to Earth. Hank and Carson were briefing the senior staff in the conference room just before the evening meal.

"As of right now, I'd say he's cured," Carson concluded.

"But Dr. Beckett and I will be monitoring him over the course of the next six months to ensure there are no relapses," Hank added quickly.

"Huh," Rodney grunted. He leaned back in his chair and played with the pen laying on the table. "Who would have thought the wraith would be good for saving someone?"

"You're not actually saying that are you?" Sheppard questioned him from across the room.

"Yes, I'm saying it," Rodney retorted firmly. "It's about time they do something worthwhile instead of just eating us."

"So when Todd wrote the code to deactivate the nanites in your sister …that didn't account for anything?" John reminded McKay.

"Oh," Rodney mumbled under his breath. "I sort of forgot about that," he added as his face flushed with embarrassment. "But besides that … it's been a long damn time since Todd did anything good for us."

"I take it you forgot how he warned us on the impending wraith attack on Earth?" Woolsey questioned McKay as well.

"Yeah, there was that too," McKay muttered turning more red by the minute. "Okay! What's the point?" he yelped when he felt all eyes on him.

"The point Rodney is that occasionally Todd does nice things for us," Sheppard replied flipping his hands over to emphasize his point.

"Five times in five years?" Rodney retorted.

"At least he's consistent," Beckett offered.

"Yeah," Sheppard agreed pointing at Carson. "So hopefully Dr. Lawson's patient will recover and not need any further treatments and Todd doesn't ask for a favor in the near future."

"Moving forward," Woolsey interrupted. "Dr. Lawson, I take it you'll be escorting your patient back to Earth?"

"Yes," Hank answered. "We'll leave first thing in the morning and I should be back in a couple of days."

""Very well then," Woolsey said conclusively. "Please keep us updated on his status."

TBC


	12. Chapter 12

MSG – 12

**Month four**

Giggles. Echoing around the space, bouncing off the walls, filling the room. Hot sexy giggles. And moans. And slurpy wet kisses. The rumpled sheets on the narrow twin bed and the two bodies tangled around each other told a story of seduction in many languages. Whispered curses, arching necks, backs and tongues all battled for a coveted place against the other. Heat and sweat slicked the skin, making the friction more tolerable.

"Ugh, gawe," a low voice moaned as the temperature kicked up a notch.

The dance played out to the silence music. The couple ramped up in the intensity as their fingers fumbled for a holding place against the slippery skin. The movement against the other occurred effortlessly like a bow across the strings of a harp. As the duo increased the pressure and force of the contact on the other, the verbal noises became louder and more persistent, working toward the crescendo of emotion.

"All personnel, report to your stations immediately. This is not a drill, repeat this is not a drill. Incoming hostiles!"

"Shit!"

"Crap!"

"Frick!"

The air in the housing wing was filled with expletives as countless members of the expedition flung the covers off the bed and scurried out of the musky heat as the emergency announcement echoed in the background. Within minutes, the corridors were filled with the pounding of footfalls as Marine, Army and Air Force personnel ran to their respective stations to prepare for the current threat.

…**~…**

Hank jogged into the control room about the same time as Major Teldy. He watched her take a position at one of the terminals and immediately request status reports from her team. Hank spotted Sheppard and Woolsey at the far side of the room staring at a plasma monitor mounted on the wall. McKay and Zelenka were babbling scientific data almost incoherently just to his right and in the middle of all the fury sat Evan calmly relaying sensor data to Amelia and Chuck. The commotion in the room seemed chaotic and there was a noticeable tension in the air, yet the personnel were running through the paces with precision just like any other day.

"What's going on?" Hank asked as he made his way to Sheppard's side.

"Oh, hi Doc," John replied calmly. "Two of our orbital beacons have picked up an ship heading our direction." He pointed at the screen and waved his hand over the dots to help Hank make sense of it all.

"Are you certain you cannot determine their identity?" Woolsey asked of McKay.

"Yes, I'm sure," McKay grumbled impatiently. "They aren't any ships we've seen in this galaxy in the past five years and there is nothing in the data base that matches it."

Hank noticed McKay's face was flushed and he was waving his hands around wildly to make his point. He looked like he was on the verge of blowing a head gasket, but before he could say anything, Zelenka butted in.

"However, we need to remember that this section of the galaxy wasn't on the ancient star charts, so we don't have any data for comparison," Zelenka stated frankly.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, Radek, I'm sure that no one has forgotten the fact that I crashed the city in the middle of no man's land," McKay huffed. "Make one mistake and people never let you live it down."

"Well, it was a big mistake," Zelenka commented.

"I didn't see you trying to do anything compensate!" Rodney snarked back at him.

"How long will it take to activate the cloak?" John asked, completely ignoring McKay's temper tantrum.

"Thirty minutes or so to get the system up and running," Radek replied.

"How long until that ship gets here?" Woosley asked glancing back at the screen.

"Forty, forty five minutes," Chuck supplied from the monitoring station closest to Sheppard.

"That doesn't leave much cushion for error," Woolsey commented. "Rodney?"

"Let's just over state the obvious," McKay growled. "Yeah, I get it … no pressure!" McKay threw his hands up in the air and then turned to walk to another computer station. He practically tripped over Zelenka and the two did a momentary dance which left McKay screaming and Radek swearing in Czech.

Hank watched the whole foray with a perplexed expression on his face. "Is that normal?" he muttered under his breath.

"If you are referring to Dr. McKay acting like the weight of the world is resting on his shoulders, yes," Woolsey commented. He took a few steps to an empty computer terminal and typed his access code onto the keys.

"And if I wasn't," Hank questioned Sheppard.

"Yeah, that's normal too," Sheppard replied.

**....~….**

"Okay people, listen up! We're ready to activate the cloak. We haven't done this in a while but now since we have two zed pms at our disposal it should go pretty smoothly," Rodney bellowed over the city wide comm.

"Rodney, enough with the fluff, just turn the damn thing on!' Sheppard yelled at him. The incoming ship was at the point of no return. If they didn't get the cloak on in five minutes, all shit was going to break loose.

"Right, ah, okay. Let me just make one final adjustment," Rodney snibbled as he typed furiously on the laptop.

"Ah god sakes, alright already!" Evan blurted out from across the room. "How is it that you can save the world from annihilation from the albino vamps and you can't figure out how to operate the ON switch!"

Work in the control room screeched to a halt as Evan's words sliced through the air. Stifled laughter and coughing could be heard around the control room and everyone seemed to be holding their breath, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Even Woolsey and Sheppard were stunned at Evan's very astute commentary. A gamut of emotions played across McKay's face and somewhere between embarrassment and indignation, Rodney finally found his voice to utter a response.

"It's a little more complicated than _that_ … CPA."

"Izawiddlemocomplicatedthanthat, wah, wah, wah!" Evan mocked. "Get on with it then!"

"And fast," Amelia added breaking the silence with the rest of the staff. "That ship will be on us in less than two minutes."

Rodney snorted heavily before making any more on the computer. Sheppard turned from the monitor and glared at him, willing him into action.

"Fine," Rodney said leaning over to tap out a final sequence of numbers onto keyboard. "Cloaking in five, four, three, two, one."

As Rodney counted off the final second, the lights and power in the control room flickered a few times and then the entire city went to black.

"What the hell?" Sheppard muttered glancing around the room. The darkness was deafening and so final. "Mckay?" John fired off as he looked around the pitch black room.

"Don't even ask!" McKay shouted. "I don't know what happened. We need some lights in here," he grumbled as he pulled the power cord from the back of the laptop trying to breathe some life into the machine. Slowly an iridescent glow filled the room.

"Evan, pull the plugs on the emergency lighting!" John yelled out, pointing Evan to the lighting station at the back of the room. "What's the status of the cloak?"

"Whaddaya think the status is?" Rodney yelped as his fingers flew over the keyboard. "It's dead! The city is dead!"

"Status on those ships?" Sheppard yelled at Amelia. He ran to the side of the room and activated a row of emergency lights.

"They're right on top of us sir," Amelia reported.

"Weapons?"

"Not hot."

All the emergency lighting finally kicked on just as Teyla and Ronon ran up the stairs with a handful of portable radios. Teyla passed them out to necessary personnel as John barked orders through the line to Rivers and Lorne and directed Teldy to her designated post.

"Have you isolated the problem?" Woolsey asked McKay. The expedition leader loomed over the mad scientist, which of course, didn't help matters much.

"What?" Rodney mumbled barely glancing over his shoulder at Woolsey. "I'm not a magician you know!"

"Really?" Evan laughed in the background. "I thought that is exactly what…."

"EVAN!" Sheppard hollered across the room. "Go with Sergeant Buse to the infirmary!" Sheppard yelled in a very controlled manner across the control room. "NOW!" he added pointing toward the stairs.

"Thank god someone finally told him to shut up," McKay commented smugly as Evan headed for the stairs.

"McKay do ya have those shields up?" Sheppard barked in his direction.

"What'd'ya think I am? A miracle worker?" McKay mumbled as he went back to focusing on his computer. "I don't know what the hell happened. One minute everything was fine and the next the whole system went to sleep. Maybe you and your princess need to go make out in the chair room or something."

"BRACE FOR IMPACT!" Amelia yelled.

…~…

Evan grimaced at the sounds of the infirmary. The coppery odor of blood and the moans of human agony filled the room. The city was still operating on emergency power, but Evan didn't need the lights on to know he didn't want to see it. He didn't even want to feel it, but he was. Ordered to apply pressure to someone's lacerated head by Dr. Phillips, Evan begrudgingly complied.

_I don't even want to be here, _he thought as he smacked a fresh piece of gauze over the bloodied one and stared blankly at the floor. _Whose idea was it for me to come on this one way excursion anyway? NO ONE said we were going to be attacked by space-faring aliens and shot at with weapons of mass destruction! _

The battled continued on in the background. At times the city rocked so hard it felt like it was going to crack in half and other times it felt like a normal day at the zoo. McKay and Zelenka's attempts to get the shields up, the city cloaked and the lights back on seemed frivolous at best. Every couple of minutes the lights would flicker just enough to raise some false hopes that they weren't going to be creamed. Then a second later an exasperated howl from McKay would filter through the tower letting everyone know that he couldn't do a damn thing about it.

"Evan, Evan, is your head still bleeding?" Divya yelled at him from across the room.

Evan's eyes bugged out and he touched his palm to his head. "I'm bleeding?" he yipped patting his head and then pulling his hand back to stare at it.

"Not your head," Divya said pointing at the patient. "Her head."

"Oh, ah…," Evan stared down at the person sitting in front of him, seeing Morgan Dempsey, a science technician, for the first time since he had been rendering aide. He wondered if she had been trying to talk to him or if she was as scared as he was at this moment. _I wonder if she read the fine print before she signed up, _he thought squinting at her head. He looked closely as the newest layer of gauze to check for any blood. "Ah, no, I think it's finally stopped," he confirmed looking up at Divya.

"Good, then wrap a pressure dressing around her head and get over here to help me," Divya remarked tossing him an ace bandage from across the room.

_How the hell am I supposed to do that? _Evan wondered as he stared at the bandage. There was no way in hell he was going to ask because Divya had a death look in her eye and everyone else was running around the infirmary like crazy. He hadn't seen Hank for a good forty minutes, although he thought he overheard someone say Hank was in surgery with one of the marines. Somehow, Evan figured it out though and then jogged to help Divya with the next victim. He had barely asked what Divya needed from him when Sheppard ran into the room looking for her.

"Divya," Sheppard called out when he spotted her at the far end of the room. He ran in her direction. "I need you."

"Why, are you injured?" she questioned with a tone that had a double meaning.

"No, I'm fine," John replied putting his hands on her shoulders. "I need you to come with me though. I want to try something with our combined ancient gene strength."

"What…"

"Look, I don't even know if it will work or how it's even going to work, but it's the best shot we have right now," John explained. "Everything that Rodney has tried hasn't worked. You and I need to go to the chair room and see if we can coax the city into defensive mode."

"What?" Evan guffawed this time. He trailed his gaze from Sheppard to Divya and realized that Divya knew exactly what he wanted.

"John, I don't really have time." Divya started to protest. "The room is filled with patients."

"Div, you need to do this," John said latching onto her hand.

"Hey, number cruncher here, not a medic." He held up his hands in surrender. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Go back to putting on band aides," John remarked as he ushered Divya to the door.

…**~…**

Divya had never been to that part of the city. Rodney had told her the stories of how those with the natural gene naturally could sit in the chair and make the city do some amazing things. The notion sent shivers up her spine. She followed John out of the transporter and down the six flights of stairs to what the dead bottom of the city. The room started to light up when the pair walked into it.

The city's reaction to them as they entered the room wasn't anything new to either John or Divya. Whenever the two of them engaged any of the ancient systems together, it was as if the city was communicating to them. The sensation that it produced was odd, but erotically exciting. Both had reported feeling _nothing special _to McKay, but admitted to each other privately that it stirred something different, something sensual and seductive between them.

Generally after McKay's little experiments, Sheppard and Divya had to steal away to a private setting for some intimate time. The exploration of their skills wasn't limited to the city's newfound systems. John slowly discovered all the places that drove Divya over the edge, all without taking that final step that would bond them forever. The waiting was driving him mad, but the buildup of excitement, the self control he needed to employ not to ravish her was teaching him a thing or two. Ironically, the city seemed to understand his predicament and strangely enough even protected Divya from him by cooling the temperature and airborne aphrodisiac down quickly to kill the moment when things seem to get out of hand.

Divya clutched John's hand as he circled the platform. "Why is it doing that?" she asked watching the panels pulsate in a pattern that started at the outside of the platform and moved toward the center, ending at the chair.

"I don't know. It's never done that before," John commented stopping at the footrest.

"How does this work?" Divya ran her hand across the back of her neck, lifting her hair up to cool herself.

"Well, normally I sit in the chair and control the weapons and the drive," John said waving his free hand at it. He glanced at her and noticed the flush in her face. "Are you warm?"

"Yes, there is a definite temperature change from the corridor."

John reached up and ran his fingertips down the side of her face. "Are you sure that's what it is?" He held her gaze with his bright green eyes.

"Yes, John," Divya replied touching her hand to his. The contact turned erotic rather quickly and Divya struggled to rein it in. "Don't you feel it?" she whispered just as he leaned over to brush his lips against hers.

The kiss between them barely fed the hunger that was building in their bellies. The temperature change seemed to fuel then need between them and it was all John could do to contain himself from letting this get very out of hand. Another volley of fire hitting the city jolted him back to his mission. He pulled from the embrace and took a step back from Divya.

"I need to sit in the chair," he remarked breathlessly. John turned toward the platform and slid into the chair, barely letting go of Divya's hand in the process.

As soon as he settled into it, the chair reclined into the operating position. John leaned his head back against the chair and closed his eyes. Something was different in the room. The air, the temperature, the chair … it was as if the city was beckoning it's favorite couple into action. John felt his energy harden in his pants and the urge to make love to her burn in his throat.

John opened his eyes and looked at Divya. He pulled her toward him on the chair. "Come here," he whispered huskily.

"How? Divya asked as she struggled to climb up into his lap. "There isn't a lot of room," she commented.

Just as she said the words, the chair changed. The armrests moved outward several inches giving the couple at least a foot of extra room. The back of the chair lowered John almost into a supine position.

Sheppard watched the changes with a stunned expression on his face. "That's never happened before," he mumbled. He looked up at Divya with hooded, dark eyes and felt his erection swell strain against his pants. "Whatever happens, keep your pants on," he whispered quickly just as he gave into the urge to pull her head to his lips.

_Crap! _

TBC.


	13. Chapter 13

MSG – 13

"Whatever you're doing, don't stop, because it's working."

The words rattled through the radio plug in John's ear. He didn't need Rodney's reassurance that the city was responding to his being in the chair. The virtual display floating over his head confirmed all he needed to know about Atlantis. The city had powered up, the lights were back on and the shields were firmly in place protecting the precious cargo within. Atlantis had given John everything he wanted and then some. It was the _then some _that was his major concern at this point.

John felt like he was being drugged and not in a pleasurable way either. _At least not at this very moment, _he thought as he struggled to keep his wits intact. The out of control euphoria reminded him of a sexual predator, hell bent on a display of power and dominance. The unfortunate victim was Divya, whom the city had obviously targeted as his mate. The problem with it was Divya wasn't any better off; in fact, she was probably more driven in her quest to possess him. The raw, feral expression in her eyes damn near scared the crap out of him.

It was nearly impossible to resist the temptation. It was all John could do to keep a handle on Divya and his own urges. He couldn't get enough of the friction between them. Every kiss, touch and movement was electricity against his skin. It set his need for contact with Divya on fire, to the point was he could barely contain himself.

Frantic didn't even begin to describe the desire that burned between them. It physically hurt to not be touching her, not kissing her delicate skin, not feeling her rub against him. There was no doubt that something mystical was propelling the moment and John was hard pressed to deny that he wanted it. In fact it was nearly all he could think about at this minute.

Yet, as much as he wanted to flip Divya on her back, tear the clothing from her body and ram himself inside her core, hard, hot and heavy, he knew he couldn't. Deep in his heart, John knew Divya and she wouldn't want it to happen like this. While she didn't buy into the whole arranged marriage notion, she still believed in some of the norms of her people. _And being a virgin on her wedding night was one of them, _John reminded himself sharply. So despite the unyielding need to take her and leave his mark on her, John forced himself to think about something else.

_Why do I always have to be the responsible one at times like this_? he wondered as he snaked his hand between their bodies and pulled the radio from his vest pocket. He watched Divya move over him, grinding her hips against his crotch, slowly unbuttoning his shirt. It wasn't long before he felt her tongue swirling around his bare nipple, teasing him with quick little bites.

John leaned his head against the chair back and took a couple of breaths. _Think football, _he reminded himself as he lifted the radio to his mouth. "Rodney, what's our status?" John gasped as he keyed the mic.

"A little busy right now," McKay quipped.

"That's not what I was asking," John replied tersely just as Divya trailed her naked breasts across his chest.

"The aliens are still firing at us, but the shields are holding," McKay reported frankly.

"What about the… cloak," John asked hoarsely as he grimaced from pleasure.

"Do you still want to do that?"

"Yeah, I still want to… ah!" John hissed just as Divya raked her fingers over his throbbing erection.

"Are you okay?" Rodney questioned. "Do you need a medic? Amelia get a medic…"

"**NO**!" John blurted into the radio. "Don't send anyone down here! I'm fine, we're fine! Ah…hmmm," he half yelled half gasped into the open comm. line. "It's just really hot down here."

"Maybe the system is overheating," Rodney surmised with a concerned tone.

"Hmm, something is overheating, but it's not the power system," John grunted. "Give me a minute to figure that out. Sheppard out." John cut the link on the radio and dropped it on the floor.

"Divya!" John said sternly grabbing her hand and pushing her back from him. He didn't let go and the distance gave him some space to push into a sitting position. "Stop!"

"I want you John," she said leaning forward to purr in his ear. "I need you. Need to feel you inside me." Divya ran her hand down the side of his chin and went back to his waist band to loosen his pants.

"I want you too, but not like this," he argued. He kept his hand on her shoulder to keep her at arms length from him. "If you do this, you're going to regret it in the morning," he said trying to jar her heritage out of her.

"You don't want me?" she moaned as she nipped seductively at his Adam's apple. Her hand was still fumbling with the button of his pants.

"I want you Divya, geezus don't ask me that," John gasped feeling his eyes rolling back in his head. He brushed his free hand over her breast and kneaded her nipple between his finger and his thumb. He noticed she had opened his pants and was slowly inching the zipper down. He moaned when her fingers slid inside his boxers and made contact with his heat. The pressure was nearly enough for him to blow his wad right there in her hand.

"Oh, Div," he gurgled as she changed up the intensity of her strokes. "God that feels, shit," he mumbled falling into the bliss. He lifted his head to brush his lips across hers, forcing his tongue into her mouth. He sucked at her mouth while he fondled her breast and she continued to stroke him with a fury. He was barely aware that she was grinding herself against his thigh.

"Sheppard, did you figure out what's overheating?" McKay's voice squawked over the radio. "I got nothing up here."

_Shit! _John pulled back from Divya's lips and couldn't decide if he wanted to throw the radio across the room or give McKay a medal. He could feel Divya moving against him and touching him and suddenly the whole idea of whatever they were about to do reminded him of a cheesy porno-flick.

"Divya, we can't do this," he said pushing her back firmly. He sat up in the chair, which put her in right in his lap, straddling him in the most seductive manner possible. _At least she kept her pants on, _he thought as he grabbed her chin to make her to look him in the eye. "Divya, can you hear me?"

"Yes, John," she replied unconvincingly.

John reached out and pulled her uniform top down over her breast and started to button up his shirt. She tangled her fingers in his hair and starting moving on him again. "Div, come on, snap out of it," he remarked. With some effort he scooted down to the end of the chair to attempt to climb out of it.

"John, don't you love me?"

The voice was right in his face but it wasn't his girlfriend speaking. John looked up into her glassed over eyes and saw the dull look on her face. "Divya!" he shouted shaking her slightly.

"John, do you looovvvee me?"

This time he noticed her lips didn't even move. The voice was coming from somewhere else entirely. _Is the city talking to me? _ he wondered. _If I say no, is she going to cut off the shields again? _Not willing to take any chances, he nodded slowly.

"You're the only one for me. You're the first person I think of when I wake up in the morning and the last person I think about before I fall asleep," he said slowly. It wasn't exactly a lie, but the sentiment was so cliché he almost cringed when it came out of his mouth. It seemed to do the trick to knock Divya out of her trance. He watched her head snap up and her eyes flutter open. Before she was really cognizant of what was going on, John wrapped his arm around her back and pushed completely out of the chair, into a standing position on the platform.

"Div?" he called to her, looking down into her eyes. He pushed his energy back in his pants with a grimace and zipped his fly up. "Divya!" he said a little louder to get her attention as he refastened his belt.

"John?" she muttered. A look of confusion covered her face. Before John could even attempt to explain what had just happened, the entire room lit up and a jolt of energy hit Div square in the back. She collapsed in his arms.

"Divya?" he yelped lowering her to the floor. "Shit!" he cursed as he felt for a pulse and checked to see if she was breathing. When he realized she was, he gathered her into his arms and rushed out of the chair room.

…**~…**

"That's it? That's all you do?" Evan questioned Dr. Rick Phillips as he watched the young doctor apply liquid stitches to the head of Morgan Dempsey.

"Yup," he said dropping the one use applicator. "Pretty simple, pinch, point and squeeze," he added. He taped a bandage over the laceration. "Take some Tylenol for any pain and try to keep water off it for the next few days Ms. Dempsey," Phillips said patting the science tech on the leg.

"Thanks doc," she mumbled jumping off the cot. She looked over at Evan and winked. "Thanks Evan," she added before she walked out of the room.

"Hmmph, looks like she's interested," Phillips commented as he picked up the mess on the gurney and dumped it in the receptacle.

"She's interested in anything that has a cock and walks," Evan grumbled pulling his gloves off and dropping them in the waste can.

"Ouch, Ev, tell it like it is," Phillips howled and knuckled bumped fists with him. Their victory was short lived when they both noticed Sheppard coming around the corner with Divya in his arms.

"Curtain two!" Phillips called out pointing at the open bed across from where he and Evan were standing. "What happened?"

"She got zapped," Sheppard remarked as the nurses and med techs circled the bed.

"I'm going to need a little more detail than that," Phillips said as the techs called out her vitals.

John ran his hand up the backside of his head. "Well, we were in the chair room and the air in the room felt really heavy. And then we ah ….. it felt like we were drugged or something … and ah….there was this shot of electricity …. It hit her," John stammered trying to tell the story by not saying much. "She collapsed into my arms."

"Breathing? Pulse?" Phillips asked running through his patient assessment.

"She was breathing and had a pulse when I picked her up," Sheppard remarked.

"You said you felt like you were drugged?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, Sue, get a blood gas from the Colonel and someone page Dr. Lawson," Phillips directed the staff. He went to walk around the bed and did a _get out of the way _dance with Evan. "Evan, make yourself scarce."

"Fine!" Evan commented stepping back from the Divya action. He didn't want to leave, but the stern look Phillips was giving him screamed _get out. _"I'll just head up to control," he mumbled slowly leaving the room.

…**~…**

"Any response from either ship?" Mr. Woolsey asked for the tenth time since the city came back online and control attempted to make contact with their uninvited guests.

"Negative," Chuck called out.

"And the shields?"

"Shields are holding," McKay announced. "The cloak is another story though."

"What does that mean?" Woolsey asked turning to glare at McKay.

"In order to cloak, we need to drop the shields and then we'd be sitting ducks," McKay explained. Never once did he look up from his computer.

"Why couldn't we drop the shields and cloak in the same second and then park the city somewhere else?" Evan asked from the other side of the room.

"Oh great the CPA with all the answers is back," McKay spouted off. "This isn't a car Lawson! We can't just start it up and move to the other side of the street."

"Why not?" Evan asked. "Last week you told me with the two zed pms we could fly to Earth and back in a couple of hours." He walked across the room and took a seat at one of the empty work stations.

"Is that true, Dr. McKay?" Woolsey asked Rodney with wide eyes.

"Well, ah… sort of," Rodney stammered. He glanced over his shoulder to sneer at Evan.

"Then it's possible to cloak and move the city to another location?" Woolsey asked with a glare that could cut ice.

"It theory yes," Rodney answered. "But at this moment it wouldn't be a good use of our resources."

"Why?"

"Well, for one, that ship is obviously are monitoring our activities, so even cloaked they would be able to tell if we moved," Rodney said very loudly.

…**~…**

John paced nervously around the infirmary waiting for an answer from Dr. Lawson on Divya's condition. He knew in his heart that he should leave, he should be in the command center trying to figure out why the aliens were firing at them or why they wouldn't talk to them or why the hell they were just out there, but he couldn't move. _Lorne has it handled, _John reminded himself as he watched the medical team do a workup on Divya. _And if he needs me, he'll call. _

John was mid pace when he saw Dr. Lawson heading his way. "Doc, how is she?" John asked a little anxious.

"She's still unconscious," Hank replied slowly. "Dr. Phillips said you felt like you were drugged?"

"Yeah, the air was heavy and I felt … ah," Sheppard stammered embarrassed of saying that the air was making him do freaky things.

"Felt what?"

"Wa…weird," Sheppard replied looking around to see who was listening.

"Weird?" Hank questioned him with a perplexed expression on his face. He glanced around to see what John was looking at and then ushered him into the office. "Do you mind explaining that in English?"

John exhaled loudly. "The air was making me feel… really… aroused," he finally squawked out. He waved his hand nervously to try to explain it, which wasn't easy. Shooting people, rallying the troops, setting a defensive perimeter were things he could do in his sleep. Explaining how Atlantis nearly forced him to boink his girlfriend was another.

"Uh huh," Hank muttered trying to comprehend it. "Both of you felt that way?"

"Yes and it was damn near impossible to resist," John answered.

"Did you?" Hank questioned. He caught the embarrassed expression on John's face and tried to explain the inquiry. "Sometimes sexual contact can trigger other things and it would be helpful for us to rule…"

"No I didn't," John said quickly cutting him off. "It's not … Divya doesn't …," he stammered again. He walked around the office and rested his hands on his hips. _How the hell did I get myself into this? _he wondered. _And why doesn't Hank know that she's still a virgin? Oh, because why would she tell him? He's her boss, not her lover. _"Divya's a va …. she wants to keep …. save… give only to her husband," John gurgled. He tried to play it off like it was no big deal, but the fact that he couldn't even get the v word off his tongue was a dead giveaway that it wasn't a little deal.

"She's a virgin," Hank surmised watching the degrees of embarrassment wash over

Sheppard's face. "So, sex wasn't a trigger."

"That's just it, I think it was," John said under his breath. "Usually the city gets it."

"What? The city gets what?" Hank asked. "This wasn't the first time?"

"Not exactly," John replied. "When Div and I help McKay with his "experiments", Atlantis responds to us in a sensual way."

"Like it did today?"

"No, definitely not like today," John chuckled. "More like a tease that just goes away when the thrill is gone. Today, it was out of control and when I didn't respond the way she wanted, it zapped Divya," John explained. "After she turned all the systems back on that is," he added.

The door opened up and Phillips' stuck his head in. "Doc, Divya's awake."

"Lorne to Colonel Sheppard," crackled the radio plug in John's ear.

"Go ahead," John answered.

"Our alien friends want to talk now," Lorne informed him.

"I'll be right there," John said giving Hank that look that said everything he couldn't verbalize.

…**~…**

**  
**"…I sent Rivers, Teldy and Frommelt up in cloaked jumpers to get some closer scans," Lorne commented finishing his sit rep as John walked across the control room. Woolsey was nowhere in sight. "McKay is still working on the cloak."

"I'm working on the impossible dream thanks to the CPA," McKay snarked from his console.

"Don't blame me!" Evan protested from the station directly behind him. "I merely asked a question."

"Yeah, a question that our fearless leader wants an answer to right now," Rodney whined frantically as he pounded his fingers across the key board.

"What the hell is he talking about?" John asked staring at McKay and then glancing at Lorne and Zelenka.

"He's trying to decide if it is possible to drop the shield and activate the cloak without the aliens figuring it out," Evan supplied from the peanut gallery.

"And then move the city across the street like it's a Volkswagen beetle or something," McKay scowled.

"Where's Woolsey?" John asked ignoring McKay.

"He went with Rivers," Lorne commented shrugging his shoulders.

"In the shuttle?" John questioned not believing it. Woolsey was the type to run and hide under his desk for the most part, not go out into a shuttle to spy on the enemy.

"Yeah, he wanted to go," Lorne said as he keyed up the video feed. "Here's the transmission from our visitors," Lorne remarked. McKay kept rambling on in the background with Zelenka and Evan, which no one paid any attention too.

The video sprang to life and revealed a normal looking human standing on a platform on the ship. The man was dressed in a military type uniform and was flanked by a couple of guards. _Overkill, _John thought as he listened the man accuse them of invading their territory and demanding the release of the _chosen one._

"Who the hell is the chosen one?" Evan blurted out just as Sheppard was thinking it.

John held his hand up for Evan to shut up and motioned for Lorne to open the comm link. "Colonel John Sheppard, how may I help you today?" John remarked in a smart aleck tone.

"I am Sir Praetor of the Fifth Echelon, you've invaded our territory," the man replied simply.

TBC


	14. Chapter 14

MSG – 14

"Recall the shuttles and get a team down to the infirmary," Sheppard ordered Lorne. He had just cleared the comm line with Praetor, who among other things, threatened to storm the city by force to retrieve the _chosen one_. It wasn't crystal clear who they were referring too, but John wasn't taking any chances. For all he knew, they could have been talking about him. He had the ancient gene naturally, but somehow he couldn't shake the feeling what happened to Divya wasn't just a coincidence.

"Rivers and Woolsey are landing. Teyla is going to handle the security detail," Lorne reported over Sheppard's shoulder.

"Good, I don't need any surprises. Shield status?"

"Holding," Lorne remarked.

"Rodney what about that cloak?" John asked him over his shoulder.

"We can cloak, but doing it without a two second delay between the two…not going to happen today," McKay said plainly.

"What about moving the city?" Evan asked.

"Forget it Lawson," McKay snarled. "Maybe we can work on that someday, but that isn't right now. We have an enemy ship breathing down our neck. We don't have time to be dinking around with circling the block."

"Alright," Evan grumbled swinging in his chair. "I just thought…"

"Evan, why don't you go back to the infirmary?" John strongly suggested. The banter was getting on his last nerve. The silence would be nice, filled with Rodney's complaining but nice. "Divya's awake and might need a friend."

"I was helping Chuck…"

"GO!" Lorne and Sheppard yell at him in unison.

"Okay, alright," he whimpered as he slinked out of his chair and headed down the stairs.

…**~…**

The infirmary was quiet when Evan entered the room. A few med techs were working at the computer terminals at the work bar in the center of the room. An armed security detail was standing near every doorway. The guns always gave Evan the creeps, even though he had been seeing them for four months now. _Wow, it's been four months already? _Evan considered walking to the side of Divya's bed. He stared down at her face and realized that she was sleeping peacefully.

"Evan," Hank said walking to the side of the bed.

"Henry, I was just checking on her," Evan said sheepishly. He turned to face his brother. "The colonel kicked me out of control and I didn't have anywhere to go," he added looking around the room. "You need any more help down here?"

"No," Hank replied. "You did well earlier. I know the blood isn't your thing but Phillips told me that you jumped right in without argument."

"Yeah, that's me. Give me some direction and I'm all there," Evan said with a half hearted smile.

"You look tired Evan, you should get some rest," Hank replied crossing his arms at his chest. "Divya's okay."

Evan knew the look, the big brother _go to bed _expression. And he'd do it except that no one in the entire base was sleeping. _Except Div and a handful of other injured people, _he noted looking around the room. Evan wasn't injured and wasn't about to just go to his room like a little kid. "Yeah, maybe you're right," Evan nodded walking slowly out of the room.

Kicked out of the control room by Sheppard and the infirmary by his own brother, Evan was left to his own devices in the city. He decided to go exploring to the lower levels of the city, somewhere he had been before, but never really checked out. _Because I usually get turned around by security, _he thought stepping into a transporter. "But they're probably really busy right now," he said aloud to the inside of the closet like device.

Seconds later he ran down the final flight of stairs that led to the chair room. Evan walked around the corner and stopped in the entryway of the fabled room. "This is it?" he questioned aloud again. Evan circled the chair and stared at it curiously. "The way the dull doctor described it, I thought it was all fluffy and cushy … not a stripped down version of a lazy boy."

Evan walked around the platform again and caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head quickly and nearly jumped out of his skin when he realized who it was. "April!"

"Evan, oh my god, I'm so glad you're down here," she babbled. "I got turned around in the corridors and couldn't find my way back to the tower."

"We're in the tower," Evan remarked with a know-it-all tone.

"What are you doing down here? Are you lost too?" April asked with that curious look of hers. She flipped her brown hair off her shoulder in a seductive manner.

Evan stared at her flirting and blinked. "No, I'm not lost," he said scrambling for an excuse. "McKay sent me down here to check so data, but I forgot my tablet." He spied hers in her arm and reached for it. "Can I borrow this?" he asked, taking the tablet from her anyway.

Evan walked to the panel of Ancient monitors in the back of the room and logged onto April's tablet. He pretended to be doing something important with the monitor and the tablet while attempting to blow her off. "Yeah, you should probably clear out of the area," Evan muttered. "McKay's going to do a test in a minute that's going to light this place up."

"What kind of test?" April asked nervously.

"Oh, I don't know, something to do with radiation and nuclear heat," Evan rambled. "It's going to get hot and really, kinda dangerous, so you shouldn't really be in the area."

"Radiation and nuclear heat?" April questioned not going for his ruse.

"Yeah, it's dangerous stuff," Evan replied not getting it that she didn't believe him. "I've been treated upstairs, so it's not dangerous for me, but you … you would be in danger."

"Evan R. Lawson," April said flatly. "I hold a PhD in geology and trust me, I know all about nuclear energy and radiation, none of which powers this room. So if you want me to scram, just tell me to leave," April deadpanned. "Don't try to blow smoke up my ass because I can talk circles around you."

"Okay," Evan said mentally wincing that he forgot she was so damn smart. "The exit is over there," he added pointing toward the right side of the room. He looked over at the doorway and practically dropped the tablet on the floor.

"Crap!"

…~…

"Oh, no no no no no," McKay moaned loudly.

"What?" Sheppard questioned. Based on Rodney's tone, he knew this wasn't his run of the mill complaining.

"Shield strength is fluctuating," McKay mumbled.

"What does that mean?" John said running over to the station where McKay was sitting.

"By my estimates, the shields will fail in fifteen minutes," Rodney blurted out.

"How is that possible? We have two zed pms now! We ran this place for years on one bad one and then some," Ronon questioned as he paced across the room.

"I don't know!" McKay grumbled. "This isn't an episode of Kate loves a mystery," he added under his breath. "The aliens are still firing their weapons at us."

"Maybe that's affecting the shields," Sheppard said leaning over Rodney's shoulder.

"Maybe and maybe if you backed off a bit, I wouldn't feel so suffocated," McKay yelped as he ducked under John's arm. He noticed a blip on the sensor screen and banged on the keyboard to replay it. "Wait, wait, who is in the chair room?"

"There isn't anyone in the chair room," Lorne replied from across the room.

"Are you sure about that Major?" Rodney asked him.

"There are four life signs on the screen," Zelenka commented.

"Rivers, Teldy, do either of you have a patrol in the chair room?" Lorne asked the other team leads. Both reported negative.

"Pull up the security footage," John directed to Amelia.

"What does that have to do with the shields?" Ronon asked. He walked around the console to stand by Amelia as she pulled up the security footage.

"I don't know," McKay yelled. "But yeah, it seems a little weird that we could run the shields on nothing for the past five years and now we suddenly have a problem."

"Who is that?" John asked aloud as he watched the security feed. He could see two people in the chair room, a male and females and two males in the corridor outside the room.

"Looks like Lawson and the rock doc," Ronon commented.

"No, I know that," John remarked. "I meant the other two."

"I can't see them," Ronon said. "Is there a better angle?"

"We just took roll call," Lorne said walking over to the console. "Everyone is accounted for and no one is in the chair room."

"Sound the intruder alert!" John yelled out as he took off for the stairs with Ronon hot on his tail.

…~…

Evan didn't need a billboard ad to know the two men that stood in front of April and he didn't belong in the city. Their weapons were unusual, even by Pegasus standards. Their military garb was dirty and stiff looking and they smelled really really bad.

"Hi, guys," Evan said uneasily. Although he had no explanation, he stepped in front of April to block her or protect her… he wasn't really sure. He handed the tablet to April to free his hands. "You guys don't belong here do you?" he asked just to make some friendly conversation.

"You are the chosen ones," one of the men said.

"Who me?" Evan replied. "Ah, I'm not … you got the wrong guy. Seriously, I couldn't even get chosen to play kickball on the playground."

The men rushed the two of them. April dropped the tablet and fought back. She charged the men with a series of kicks and punches. She even managed to knock one of the guys down while Evan stood there with a dumbfounded expression on his face. When the second guy hit her, he finally sprung to action and jumped on his back. Evan wailed on the man with his fists to no avail. The first man got up and slammed April on the back of the neck, dropping her to the floor. The second shoved a gun like weapon in Evan's face.

"Okay, uncle! I give!" Evan said holding his hands in front of him and backing up. He looked over at April and noticed a big gash on the back of her head, and blood running down on the floor.

"Sir Praetor, we've got the chosen ones," the first man said.

Evan heard heavy footfalls in the corridor and tried to stall to buy some time for the security detail to get there. "Hey, um … she looks hurt and I'm sort of a medic, so you know, I could just look at her to see if she's okay," he stammered. He tried to take a step sideways and the man grabbed his arm. A second later the entire room lit up and Evan felt that sickening pins and needles sensation rattle though his body.

…~…

"SHIELDS ARE DOWN!"

Rodney's voice screeched through the radio buds as information only as the security details advanced on the chair room. The details were sketchy. Two intruders in the chair room with weapons. The thought of the city being invaded again put the teams on edge. It wasn't the first time aliens had defeated their defense perimeter. The last time when Dr. McKay and Jackson were abducted weighed heavy on everyone's mind. It wasn't going to happen again.

The shields going down threw a snag in their plans. As the four teams converged on the room, a very bright light flooded the adjoining corridors and blinded everyone looking in that direction. Everyone except the Satedan that is who charged into the room anyway. Sheppard held a position just outside the door, shielding his eyes until the white light faded. He ran through the doorway a second later and found the room empty.

"Rodney, track that ship!" he screamed into his radio. "Sheppard to Frommelt, are you still in position above the city?"

"Yes sir," Frommelt answered from jumper four.

"The alien ship is powering engines," McKay reported.

"I'm going for drones," John shouted jumping into the chair. It immediately reclined and the room darkened in response to him. John checked the HUD (heads up display) above him for the position of the ship and the jumper in relationship to the city. "Fire two," he thought as the city released two drones from the hold, aiming them at the alien vessel. One was a direct hit, crippling what Sheppard thought was their drive engine. The other hit an undisclosed part of the ship.

"Shit! Frommelt follow as best you can!" John cursed when he watched the ship bug out of the sector. The jumper Frommelt was piloting was one of two that had been modified with a prototype hyper drive engine. "Rodney!"

"Looks like the propulsion is FTL drive," Rodney commented across the radio.

"What the hell did the drone hit?" Sheppard questioned.

"The drone hit the hyper drive," McKay said. "They just happen to have a backup it looks like."

"It looks like?" John repeated curtly.

"Well, it's a good thing because Frommelt can track them easier," Rodney explained.

"Well, great," John grumbled loudly. "Since they took two of our people."

TBC


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Sorry for the sporadic updates. I'm trying to stay at least five chapters ahead of what I've posted, but real life had the nerve to get in the way of my writing. I could use a few reviews about how it's going so far.

MSG – 15

"What do you mean Evan's missing?" Hank stammered. He shifted in his seat and eyed the three men in front of him, Colonel Sheppard, Major Lorne and Mr. Woolsey.

"He was bickering with McKay and I told him to go to the infirmary," John started to explain.

"Wait, you told him to go to the infirmary?" Hank questioned shaking his head.

"Yes, why?"

"Because I kic…. told him to go to bed," Hank remarked.

"Well that explains why he was wandering the halls," Lorne said. He turned in his seat and cued up the security feed on the monitor. "We have him on security feed here, here, and here," Lorne commented as he changed the views on the monitor three times.

"Then he walks into the chair room and is approached by April Fuller," Sheppard remarked just as Lorne changed the screen. "It looks like the two are just talking a moment when the intruders walk up on them. As you can see, there was a short scuffle and then the four were transported out of the city to the enemy ship."

The security feed played in the background as Sheppard spoke and Hank stared at it in disbelief. He saw Evan and April enter the room and engage in conversation. Then two alien men walked into the room and started to fight with April, Evan stepped in to help. April got clocked in the back of the neck and all four disappeared into a ball of light.

"We're not sure exactly where they went," Sheppard said as silence filled the room. "We tracked them for about three hours and then they disappeared off the radar."

"What does that mean exactly?" Hank said still trying to understand it all. In the three and a half months he had been in Atlantis he'd been exposed to a lot of strange things. He thought he'd seen everything. But aliens attacking the city and leaving with hostages wasn't one thing he was prepared for. _And am I responsible for this? _he wondered. _I did kick him out of sickbay. If he would have stayed, none of this would have happened. _ Hank mulled the complexities over in his mind as Woolsey talked to him in the background.

"It means, Dr. Lawson, we are looking for the ship that took your brother and Dr. Fuller," Woolsey said frankly.

The stunned expression on Hank's face paralyzed his tongue. Evan had always been his responsibility in life and now he was just gone and for what? How long? By who? The questions plagued his mind but somehow the words didn't make it to his mouth.

Lorne acknowledged the lost feeling Hank was feeling. "Doc, I know there are a lot of questions and not a lot of answers right now," the major said in a reassuring voice.

"We'll find them doc," Sheppard said plainly. "We won't give up until we find them. We don't leave our people behind. Ever."

…**~…**

It was a cell of sorts. _I guess it's a cell, looks about the same size as my room on Daedulas, _Evan noted looking around the space. _Four walls, ceiling, floor and a door. That's what I'd imagine a cell would look like ... or a closet, _he thought. Evan looked at his watch and recalculated the time. It had been about eight hours since he and April were plucked out of the city by two smelly armed men. _Eight … plus thirteen hundred, so its nine o'clock earth time, that means its I don't know what fricken time Atlantis time, _Evan mind rambled as he tried to distract himself. _Earth time? Who'd ever thought I'd have to think about Earth time and space time? _

"Shit, we might be here a while," he said aloud. He sat back against the wall hard. He knew teams went off world at all times of the day and night, but they weren't on a world. "I may never see Earth again." He looked to the right at April lying next to him. "I might be stuck on a strange world with April for the rest of my life….if she'd wake up."

Since they were abducted, April had woken up twice. Delirious and acting crazy in Evan's opinion, but considering how hard the guy had hit her and the amount of blood she lost, he figured it was pretty normal. She was only awake a few minutes before she passed out again. _At least I think she passed out, _he considered as he reached over to check her pulse again. _Okay, good, her heart is beating and she breathing, _Evan informed himself.

No one had come to the door or talked to him since they dumped him in this cell. Evan was locked in here first and April was dropped off about an hour later. Evan wanted to wonder what they had been doing to her that whole time, but he was afraid to even conjure up the images in his mind. He glanced over at April and checked out her clothing. _It seems to be in place, _Evan shuddered trying to stay positive. _I wonder if they drugged her or something, _he pondered crawling over to April to check her arms.

Arms, neck, head, face, legs. Evan examined every exposed inch for any needle marks on April's flesh. He even checked some not exposed areas to make sure they hadn't done anything else to her. _Than practically knocking her head off, _he thought sitting back against the wall. The floor he was sitting on was a little cold and he wondered if that was the reason she wasn't waking up. He scooted closer to her and pulled her body up into his lap, so her head was resting on his leg. _I think that makes me feel better, _he thought staring down at her. _No, it doesn't, _he finally conceded closing his eyes.

…**~…**

The sun rose in the horizon cutting through the dark of the night. The sky sparkled to life, popping out bright pinks and yellows streaks across the clouds. As day night turned to life, the stillness of the mess hall morphed into a low murmur of voices, clinking trays and cafeteria noises.

Colonel Sheppard walked into the room and scanned through the tables. He found what he was looking for and made the trek across the room to a table by the window.

"Doc," he greeted Hank as he sat down in the opposite char. He noticed Hank fiddling with a half empty cup of coffee. His eyes were tired and had a dull sheen too them. "You get any sleep?"

"Ah, not really," Hank said glancing up at the Colonel. "Do you have anything?"

"No," John said frankly. "But we're working on it and we'll keep on working on it until we find them."

"I just …. feel responsible," Hank said pushing the cup away. "I've had to take care of him since I was twelve…," he rambled.

"Doc, look, if anyone is responsible for this it's me. I'm the one that kicked him out of control. I should have sent him to his quarters instead of the infirmary. In the end it doesn't matter. The intruders could have taken any one of us from anywhere in the city. It's happened before and as much as I don't like it, it's going to happen again. And nearly every time, we bring them back alive," John remarked, mentally wincing about Elizabeth.

"You don't think they'll ki..," his voice caught in his throat.

John watched the tears well up in Hank's eye and looked away out of respect. He knew the feeling, because that was him every time someone went missing. "You need to stop thinking like that Hank. April has survival training and Evan is more resourceful than any of us give him credit for. They can hold until we find them."

"Yeah," Hank replied. He glanced at his watch and sighed. "I'm leaving for Earth in forty minutes."

"To check on Boris," Sheppard remarked. He already knew where Hank was going because he had cleared Rivers' detail for the trip back to Earth. Rivers, Divya, Hank and one security agent were scheduled to be gone for forty eight earth hours. "Going back to something familiar might be good right about now."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Hank questioned the military leader of the base.

"No, but that's life in combat," John remarked getting up from the table. As he walked past Lawson, he rested his hand on Hank's shoulder with what reassuring comfort he could muster.

John was horrible when it came to dealing with feelings. Even after five years and countless of lives that were lost, he still wasn't any good at dealing with the hurt and the guilt. Usually he didn't have to face the family until he had compartmentalized it all into that tiny place of his. Siblings on Atlantis were uncharted territory for him. _I have to optimistic, comforting and relentless, _he thought as he headed up to control.

…**~…**

Evan rolled his head across his shoulders and stretched his arms above his head. His arms and legs ached from the cool flooring that he sat and laid on all night. He pushed up and paced around the small space, antsy to escape.

"You better eat that food," April said as she watched him pace.

"That?" Evan said pointing at the bowl of lumpy liquid.

"Yeah, that," April said as she picked at hers.

"That's not food," Evan remarked. "Did you smell it?"

"These people are probably space dwellers and don't get fresh food much," she said swallowing a bit of the mush down.

"So? That means I have to suffer along with them?" Evan complained.

"In case you didn't notice, we're prisoners," April informed him.

"Oh, I noticed," Evan said curtly. "I've noticed for the entire twelve hours that we've been trapped in this room… not including the three minutes that those two armed goons let me take a leak in that antiquated excuse for a toilet." He walked to the door and stared at the plain gray hatch. "If we were guests, we wouldn't be kept in a closet."

"Okay! Alright!" April yelled at him. "Regardless of all that, you still need to keep your strength up and the only way you are going to do that is to eat that mush."

"Since when you are you miss survivor?" Evan questioned as he slumped back down on his butt.

"Since I had to take a survival course to be posted in the Stargate program," she scowled at him. "Unlike you who just came along for the ride!"

"Hey! I have a purpose here!" Evan fired back at her.

"What? McKay's tax advisor?"

"No! I am the economic specialist," Evan replied smugly.

April stared at him with an evil glare in her eye. She picked at the bowl of food some more and ate a little more of it before saying another word. "Hey, how'd you get into Boris's party anyway?"

"How did you get in?" Evan asked her back.

"I was invited," she replied. "My father works at his bank."

"Huh," Evan grunted avoiding her question. Silence fell between the two for a couple of minutes until April realized he hadn't answered her.

"So?" she prompted him again.

"So what?" Evan grumbled.

"So, how did you get into the party?" she asked again in a sing-songy voice.

"Um, we crashed it," Evan said frankly.

"You crashed Boris's party?"

"Yeah," Evan said shrugging his shoulders. "It was a piece of cake. And why are you asking anyway … As I remember, Hank saved your life that night."

"Ugh, yeah, don't remind me," she said shaking her head. "Who have thought you could get so sick from smelling the flowers?"

Evan tilted his head and pointed his finger at her. "Now that I think about it Dr. Fuller, Miss PhD in rocks … you should have known better that to stick your nose into such a flower."

"I'm a geologist Evan, not a biologist," she reminded him. "None of the flowers in Boris's garden are poisonous."

"How …." Before he could answer, the door clanged open and two guards stood in front of them with weapons drawn.

"You two, come with us."

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

MSG – 16

Stepping out of the helicopter, the Hampton air that greeted Hank was icy cold and bitterly fresh. Snow covered the ground at the landing pad and the ground crunched as he and Divya walked quickly toward the chateau.

Hank stopped in the driveway and looked around at scenery. In the summer the Hamptons was warm, green and full of life. On this snowy December day, the atmosphere was sheltered and yet oddly beautiful.

"Hank!" Divya called to him. She stood in the doorway of the guest cottage holding the door waving for him to come in.

"Sorry," Hank remarked breezing through the door. He stomped his feet on the floor to knock off the snow. "Just checking out the neighborhood."

"It's fortified and cold," Major Rivers remarked as he hung his coat on the rack. "What more is there to know?" The bald man turned one of the stove burners on and held his hand above the flame.

"You could turn up the heat instead of trying to burn the house down," Divya remarked walking over to the thermostat.

"Did you grow up here?" Rivers asked her. He reluctantly turned the stove top off and shoved his hands in his pocket.

"My family has houses here, in the city and London," she said. "I spent my summers here, Christmas in Manhattan and attended boarding school in London," she added walking toward the washroom.

"Oh, so then your parents are in New York now?" Rivers commented. "Maybe we should go visit."

Divya stared at the Major with a look that could melt ice. "That won't be necessary, Major," she replied caustically. She walked into the washroom and slammed the door.

"I was kidding!" Rivers said loudly. "Hank, she knows I was kidding right?"

"I dunno," Hank muttered. His cell phone rang just as he started to say something else and he pulled it out of his pocket. "Hank."

"Hank!" Boris's voice rang through the phone.

…**~…**

"They're probably going to torture us," April said to Evan.

The two Atlanteans had been moved by their captures across the ship to a different containment area roughly four hours ago. This one was bigger and had a small cot in the corner. Both had taken turns pacing across the space. Evan watched as April did a couple hundred pushups and crunches. Both had been sitting on the floor not speaking for the past thirty minutes.

"Did you hear me?" April asked him when Evan didn't respond.

"Yeah, I heard you. They _might _torture us," Evan replied.

"Not might … probably," April clarified.

"Aren't they the same thing?"

"No …might is similar to may. Probably is equal to most certainly."

"Okay," Evan commented slowly nodding his head. "That's as clear as mud."

"Right, so I'm just saying that you need to be prepared for it," April remarked.

"For what? Getting the crap kicked out of me?"

"Or watching them kick the crap out of me," April countered. "In all likelihood they'll use me against you, so you need to be able to block it from your thoughts."

"Wait, I'm just supposed to do nothing while they beat you?"

"Yes Evan. If they know that hurting me will affect you, they'll leverage it to get what they want," April said flatly. "I can handle it. You just need to act like it doesn't affect you … block it."

Evan pushed up off the floor and walked in a circle around his corner. "Block it … how?"

"Go to your happy place," April remarked. "Some place where it's easy to get lost in."

"What?" he guffawed just as he heard movement outside the door. He felt his breath hitch in his throat and glared in April's direction.

"Just block it out," April said quickly as the lock on the door started to move.

"How?" Evan asked a little more frantically this time.

"Like you do when Dr. McKay is droning on it your ear."

…**~…**

"Teyla! What'd'ya got?" Sheppard said running into control.

He was sleeping when they had called him down to the gate. His team had been on the run all day, looking for clues about this mysterious group of humans that had a very fast, very technologically advanced ship. Most of their contacts weren't much help, but a few thought they _might know someone that knew someone that knew_. One of those that thought she knew was Larrin.

Of course an encounter with Larrin came with a price. Instead of trying to tie him up or throw him in a cell, this time she wanted him. _Literally. _ As soon as the jumper docked with her ship she was all over him. Touching him, rubbing against him, cooing at him and despite that he was carrying two guns, it was all he could do to keep her at arm's length. She wasn't too happy about it either and then completely gave him the brush off saying she would _see _if any of their ships had made contact with these aliens.

By the time Sheppard got back to Atlantis, he had a full-blown headache and headed up to take a nap. For the first ten minutes he stared at the ceiling wondering what Divya was doing back in the Hamptons. The second five he thought about how he promised both Divya and Hank he would find Evan alive and then somehow he finally managed to fall asleep. Then twenty minutes later, he was back in command for the update and he still had a headache.

"We just got a message from Larrin," Teyla said glancing up at him.

"Huh, imagine that," he muttered. "Anything good?"

"She provided a gate address of a planet where these people are known to live," Teyla replied pointing at a planet cluster just down the road a piece from their current location. The point on the star chart was at the very edge of the explored Pegasus space.

"No wonder why they got away so fast," John said squinting at the map. "How close can we get to recon?" he asked Amelia over his shoulder.

"There's an orbital gate here," Amelia answered using her mouse to highlight it on the monitor in front of the colonel. "It's a roughly two hours from the planet."

"Sheppard to Teldy," John said into his radio as he motioned for Teyla to gear up.

"Teldy here."

"Find Sergeant Baylor and assemble your teams. Meet me in the jumper bay in thirty minutes for a recon mission."

…**~…**

"You want me to do what?" Evan guffawed at the man with a gun. Back talking your capturers, especially armed ones, was probably a bad idea in survival one oh one, but so was dropping bombshells on the prisoners.

"You are the chosen ones and it is time," the man repeated. "You will mate."

"Mate … with whom?" Evan asked and when the man pointed at April, his eyes practically popped out of his head. "You want me to mate with her? Are you nuts?"

"Oh, thanks a lot Lawson," April sneered. "You act like I have the plague."

"There is no way I'm going to do that," Evan said waving his arms in frustration at the man. "No …. ah ah." He crossed his arms at his chest very defiantly.

"You don't have a choice," the man said.

"Yes I do. This is a free country man and if I'm going to sleep with a woman it's going to be one that I happen to like!" Evan screamed throwing a finger right in the guys face.

"You don't like her?" the man asked. "She's beautiful."

"Yeah and a psycho bitch stalker!" Evan retorted talking fast. He noticed April's face was flushed with anger but he didn't care. _These thugs can't force me to boink her, ewww! _

Evan continued to ramble on to the men regarding the nineteen reasons he wasn't going to do anything they said, especially not to _mate _with April. And the bull spewing from his mouth seemed to be working, up until the silent one kicked him in the shins and dropped him to the floor.

"You have an hour to decide how that is going to work or we'll decide for you," the main guy said just before they back out of the door.

"Way to go Einstein, you sure showed them," April remarked as the steel door clanged shut.

…**~…**

The backdrop of the pub was hid a lot of things from the naked eye. A haze of cigarette smoke hung heavily in the air and peanut shells covered the worn wooden floors. The dark décor hid the years of dirt and neglect, but the atmosphere was inviting and warm. This wasn't a martini bar or clean posh billiards club that from uptown Manhattan. He could have been out with Boris tonight, in some high end establishment swanking it up with equally famous clientele. This dingy joint was the only place he wanted to be. Alone with his shot of scotch.

The dark room held the aroma of fried food and sticky drinks. Only beer and hard liquor were served at this joint. Drinks came in chubby glasses that hadn't seen the inside of a dishwasher in years. The bodies that lined the bar had probably been there as long, mostly locals from the west side of town. Driving his Saab, Hank barely fit in, but he'd been there before, so they just ignored him.

"Well, look what the cat drug in."

The sultry voice was familiar enough. Flashes of naked flesh danced in his mind just before he turned his head. "Jill," Hank greeted her slowly.

"Oh my god, you're drunk," Jill commented with a startled expression on her face.

"Not drunk exactly," Hank grumbled. "It's complicated," he added not wanting to broach the Evan subject tonight.

"Ah," Jill grunted. "So is this just a monthly thing … coming back to the Hamptons? I see you two months ago, and then I heard you were here last month and now I see you again today."

"Well, yeah, I guess it's something like that," Hank conceded. "I've actually been in the area a few more times. I just come back to check on a couple of patients here and there." He rolled his head on his neck in his signature style. Just keeping it casual.

"Patients," Jill replied nodding her head. "And your partner that I met? Mr. Rivers?"

"He's ah…" Hank paused and looked around the room. He found Major Rivers and one of his guys playing pool. "Over there."

"Right," Jill muttered taking it all in. "And what's your connection to him?"

Hank gazed at her without saying a word. "What's with all the questions? Are you having second thoughts about dumping me?" Hank boldly asked her. He could care less what the answer was. All he really cared about tonight was getting back to Atlantis and finding Evan.

"I don't know," she finally conceded. "I just feel like I don't know you anymore."

"Yeah, we're all full of surprises," Hank said toying with his drink. He didn't say another word to her and after a moment she got up left. The old Hank may have tried to engage her in conversation or even told her that he was seeing someone else, but the new and improve Hank had more important things to think about.

TBC


	17. Chapter 17

MSG – 17

"Okay, when those guys come back, I'm going to jump them," Evan informed April. He had been lying on the small cot in the corner of the room for over twenty minutes while April went back to doing her yoga workout.

"You're going to jump them?" April questioned him. She was sitting on the floor practicing her breathing and just rolled her eyes at Evan. She pulled her hair out of the elastic band and ran her fingers through it.

"Yeah, I'm going to hide behind the door and hit the guy on the back of the neck," Evan remarked. He waved his hand in a punching manner to show how it was going to work.

"You're going to hit them?" April repeated as she stretched her leg out in front of her. "Two guys?"

"You could help you know," Evan said rolling over on the cot.

"I am helping. I went along with your little tirade didn't I?" she remarked caustically. "Despite that you made me out to be a psycho!"

"And look what that bought us!"

"What? A sixty minute deadline?" she growled looking at her watch. "Which is going to be up soon, by the way."

"Okay maybe the jumping thing is a bad idea," Evan said rolling over on his side. "Let's tell them that we'll do it … if ….,"

"What?" April blurted out. She shook her head in disbelief. "We're not doing … I'm not going to sex with you."

"Trust me … I _do not_ want that to happen either," Evan agreed and then backpedaled when he thought he hurt her feelings. "I think you're hot and it could be fun for a second, although I think they have other thoughts about the purpose and I'm sure that partaking in such events would be frowned upon back at the base," Evan rambled quickly. "No … if you'd let me finish … I think we tell them we'll do it if they feed us a real meal and let us take showers."

"Showers and food?" April questioned him. "They're never going to go for that."

"How do you know? Can't we even try?" Evan prodded her sitting up on the cot. "You don't know that it won't work. We're hungry and we both stink," he argued. "What's the worst that can happen? We can stall a little longer then!"

April bit her lip in thought. "I guess it could buy us a few extra minutes," she mumbled.

"A few minutes? It took you nearly an hour to primp your lipstick in my hotel room the first time we met sweetheart," Evan reminded her. "For once in your life you better take more than a minute."

…**~…**

Two cloaked jumpers successfully descended on the planet surface without being detected. Sixteen team members deployed into the weeds and surveyed their designated areas on foot. They were on the ground for three hours without much of luck until Corporal Ben Casey gave a sit rep Major Teldy over the radio.

"Major, I got something here."

"What?" Teldy asked checking the young soldier's position through her binoculars. He was about a quarter mile from her location, hiding between the buildings of the compound.

"Chatter about the _chosen ones _on the ship and preparing for the coming," the man said.

"Evan Lawson is the chosen one?" Teldy muttered under her breath … forgetting the line was still open.

"Well, he _is _with Dr. Fuller ma'm. She's ah … nice looking," he replied nervously.

"Right," Teldy mumbled flinching about the open mic. "Anything else Case?"

"Apparently there is some concern because _they _aren't exhibiting the signs of the coming," Casey reported.

"They being Evan and April?"

"Shh," Casey hissed. A few seconds went by before anyone spoke again. "The chosen ones will be re-injected with propellant and then the coming will take place. Afterward they will be separated and brought to the shrine." The corporal paused another fifteen seconds and then relayed the last bit of information. "Okay, they are talking about some kind of sacrifice."

"Oh great," Teldy growled as she keyed her mic again. "Roger than Corporal. Fall back to the point of egress." She signed off and changed flipped the radio frequency to TAC one. "Teldy to Sheppard."

"Sheppard."

"We have the intel. The targets are still on the ship. They won't be brought here for a while, but when they are, it doesn't look good for one of them." Teldy winced at the thought of whatever they were proposing. "We're pulling back to the jumper."

"Roger that, we'll rendezvous there."

…**.~….**

His head was pounding behind his eyes. His tongue felt like it was coated with cotton balls and his throat was as dry as the desert. His eyes could barely focus as he tried to pry them open. His ears were working though, as his cell phone rang excessively less than two feet from his head. Hank reached out and fumbled around the night stand trying to locate his blackberry, cringing at the volume level of the ring tone. Somehow he found it and thumbed it on without looking at the caller id.

"Hello?" His voice was crusty and hoarse. Hank covered his eyes with his arm, attempting to shield himself from reality.

"Hank, its Jill. Don't hang up," she said through the line. "I know you don't want to talk to me, but Marshall Bryant was killed in a car accident last night."

Hank was awake in a micro second. "What? Where's Tucker?"

"He's here at the hospital. He was in the car and injured," Jill reported. "You're listed as his emergency contact."

"Yeah, yeah," Hank muttered. He kicked the covers off his legs and jumped up from the bed. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

Hank breezed through the doors of the Emergency Room twenty minutes later. Alone. He left a note on the counter for Divya and Rivers, not that it should have mattered. He wasn't a military prisoner. He wasn't going to be spewing Atlantis's secrets to anyone in the Hamptons, not that he knew any really.

The nurse at the desk in Emergency recognized him right away and directed Hank to intensive care. She even called ahead to tell the floor nurse, so she could have Tucker's chart ready for Hank when he got there. The mood around Tucker's room was grim and most of the nurses were quiet about his status. When Hank read the chart he knew why too. Tucker had nearly bled to death in the car.

"He just got out of recovery, Dr. Lawson," the nurse informed him.

"Right," Hank mumbled as he flipped through the chart. He set it down on the ledge and glanced over at the teenager lying unconscious on the bed. There were tubes coming out of nearly every orifice and monitors watching his every move. Hank stepped closer to the bed to check the stats on the monitor. He stared at the numbers until they blurred in front of him. _First Evan, now Tucker, _he thought as he walked backward to an empty chair and sat down.

…**~…**

Evan tilted his head to the side and scanned the faces of the two men in front of him. He had just laid out their demands of a shower and a meal before they participated in any extracurricular activities. The men were silent, their faces a blank slate while they considered his proposal. The seconds ticked out slowly before either of the four made a move or said a thing.

The part that Evan hadn't planned for was April. He had thought she would stand strong next to him. _Like Divya would have or Hank or Teldy, _he thought as he eyed her standing behind him. Instead she ran like a scared chicken and was practically cowering in his shadow. _So much for her survival training, _he mulled over in his head.

"So what's the word?" Evan prompted the two men.

"You're in no position to make demands," the talker replied. Neither man moved an inch.

"I think I'm in every position," Evan retorted. "You can't just force someone to have sex against their will! Is that how it works on your world? Because it's not how it works on ours! You're asking me to do something that is morally and ethically wrong."

"If I let you eat, you'll complete the process?"

"And shower."

"A meal is all I can do," the talker said.

"Then no deal," Evan replied shaking his head.

"I'm not sleeping with his stanky ass," April piped in, finally.

"Yeah, I haven't taken a shower for days," Evan added.

"You've only been on our ship for a half a day," the man remarked calling Evan out on his fib.

"Yeah, well, I don't know about your ship … but on ours, we have to ration the water. So we're assigned days when we can take a shower and last night was supposed to be my night," Evan said waving his hands around in big motions. "So I haven't taken a shower in days and have you ever tried to get intimate with someone when you stink?"

The tension in the room could have been cut with a knife as the three men came to an impasse. Evan stood his ground, with April clinging to his arm. The gunmen didn't move and didn't flinch for a good minute. Just when Evan thought they weren't going to go for the shower thing, the silent one finally talked.

"He has a point."

The talker shrugged his shoulders and sighed heavily. "Fine."

TBC


	18. Chapter 18

MSG – 18

"Where's McKay?" Sheppard asked as he stalked around the briefing room. The occupants consisted of Teyla and Ronon, Corporal Casey, Major Lorne, and Dr. Phillips. Woolsey was at an IOA meeting on Earth and McKay was unaccounted for.

"I saw him in the mess hall," Teyla offered.

"Rodney?" John yelled over the radio.

"I'm here, I'm here," he answered running into the room with half of his lunch in his hand. He slid into a chair and took a quick head count. "Where's Woolsey?"

"He went to Earth this morning with Rivers and Hank," Ronon said.

"Oh, what? We have people missing and he goes on a pleasure cruise?" McKay grumbled as he took a bite of his sandwich.

"You went to get lunch instead of coming to the briefing," Ronon remarked.

"I was hungry," Rodney replied. "Running is labor intensive."

"Yeah, if you actually run," Ronon grunted with a sinister laugh.

"Hey! Pay attention!" John yelled at the two. "Preparing for the coming," Sheppard repeated for the fourth time. "Any ideas on what that means?" He looked around the room for suggestions. No one seemed to have any answer.

"If Lawson and Fuller are the chosen ones, then maybe their arrival at the planet is the coming," Lorne suggested.

"Negative," Corporal Casey blurted out. "Respectfully sir," he backpedalled. "Those on the ground specifically stated the chosen ones would be brought to the planet after the coming."

"So maybe just the two of them being together is the coming," Ronon remarked.

John tilted his head as he considered the statements. His mind reeled back to the out of control urges that he and Divya shared in the chair room and the aliens attack on the city. _We've been in the sector for three months and we're just attacked out of the blue? _ _Whatever this coming is … _John never had a chance to finish the thought in his head, because someone else verbalized their own.

"How do we know that Evan and April are the chosen ones?" Dr. Phillips asked the room.

"It was on the security feed from the chair room," Lorne remarked. "The intruders said it to them before they transported out of the room."

"And why were Evan and April down there?" Phillips asked with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Because they were goofing off," McKay growled. "What does it matter? They were taken by thugs that kicked our asses."

"I'm just asking because what if the intruders took the wrong people." Phillips questioned.

"What do you mean?" Major Lorne asked.

"Well, Colonel Sheppard and Divya were in the chair room earlier and Divya was struck with an energy burst," Phillips clarified. "What if the intruders threw that out for a lure to snag their targets?"

"Oh for the love of god," McKay mumbled rolling his eyes. "Not everything that happens in this city is because of the golden couple."

"Wait, wait, wait, are you saying….the out of control feeling Divya and I had came from the other ship?" John questioned.

"Maybe ….it just seems a little odd in my limited book of Pegasus experiences," Phillips replied running his hand through his dark buzz cut. "There _was_ an unidentified gas in your blood workup."

"We were in the midst of a full out attack when you two were in the chair room," Lorne supplied. "It's possible that's when they transported in."

"And because the shields went up, they had to rethink their exit strategy," Ronon said agreeing with the line of thinking. "Otherwise…"

"It would have been Divya and I that were abducted," Sheppard concluded.

"Wait, wait, wait," McKay blurted out looking around the room. "Are you saying that the chosen ones should have been Sheppard and Divya?"

"Yes!" Nearly everyone else chimed into the response, leaving McKay the only one that hadn't fit the puzzle pieces together.

"Okay, so the wrong people were taken, big whoop," McKay remarked still not getting the point. "What difference does it make?"

"When Div and I were down there, it was nearly impossible for me not to have my hands all over her," John muttered as he thought it through in his head.

"And that's different?" McKay snarked. "You two are always making out."

"This was definitely different," John remarked. He felt his cheeks getting hot with embarrassment. "It was like we didn't have control. I had to distract myself by calling Rodney just to regain my composure."

"Basically what you're saying is the intruders gassed the chair room with the intention of abducting whoever was in there for some perverse ritual of theirs, only those that were gassed had left and they took Lawson and Fuller instead," Corporal Casey surmised aloud. All eyes in the room turned to stare at the young corporal making him very nervous.

"Basically," Ronon finally said to break the silence.

"How long do you think it's going to take for them to figure out that Fuller and Lawson weren't the right couple?" Lorne asked the group.

"The better question is what will they do with them when they realize it?" John said solemnly.

…**~…**

"Hank."

Hank turned in the hallway outside of Tucker Bryant's room and watched Major Stone Rivers walk toward him. The Hispanic male moved through the corridor like a skater on ice. He barely made a sound, yet everyone ducked out of his way when they saw him.

"How's the kid?" Stone asked once he was within a few feet.

"He's in rough shape," Hank remarked.

Rivers nodded and handed Hank an envelope. "Div asked me to give this to you. She's closing the project."

"The test results from Dover?" Hank muttered as he peeked in at the paper. "That was fast."

"It's the military doc, we don't mess around," the major remarked. "How long... ah…" his voice trailed off, not sure how to ask Hank how much extra time he'd need in the Hamptons. They were scheduled to be off world for forty eight hours this trip and twenty four were already gone.

"I don't know," Hank said anticipating his questions. He waved Rivers down the hall into an alcove. "Jill's trying to make contact with Tucker's next of kin. I don't think I should leave in case he wakes up … but," Hank ran his hand across his brow, "this is complicated with Evan."

"I'll check in with command to get a status report on Ev," Rivers said. "Divya can take care of your patient in the city."

"Oh, Ms. Newberg," Hank scowled rolling his eyes. "Nothing can be simple can it?"

"Didn't you read the small print before you signed up? Simple isn't part of our mission," Rivers replied patting Hank on the shoulder. Both men heard a cough at the door and turned to see Jill standing behind them. "I'll be in touch," Rivers commented as he headed for the door. "Ms Casey," he nodded at her seductively.

"Mr. Rivers," Jill acknowledged. She stood to the side and let him pass. She watched him walk down the corridor before glancing back at Hank. "What's going on between you two?"

"Jill, is this really the time for that?" Hank growled. He tapped the envelope against his palm. His nerves were shot and the tiny bit of a hangover he was nursing wasn't helping any.

"No, sorry," she replied. She fiddled with the door knob. "Mr. Bryant's attorney is on the way from New York. He should be here in about thirty minutes."

"His attorney? What about next of kin?" Hank asked with a perplexed expression on his face.

'I couldn't find anything in the records. Other than you, the only contact we had for the family was the attorney," Jill replied. "Unless you have someone else." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Ah, no," Hank mumbled remembering the four times that Marshall Bryant had fired him. _He never signed the parental consent form either, _Hank thought. "Any word from the police on the cause of the accident?"

"I suspect driving under the influence had something to do with it. Mr. Bryant's blood alcohol level was point three oh," Jill said crossing her arms at her chest.

"Geezus," Hank muttered. He crumpled up the envelope in his hand and shoved it in his pocket.

"Hank, are you okay?" Jill asked with a concerned tone. "I know it's none of my business, but you look like hell."

"Yeah, I'm ah …," Hank stopped as he tried to wrap his finger around the emotions he was feeling. "I'm just tired."

"If you want to catch some rest, the on call room is open," she said, just accepting his answer unconditionally.

…~…

The slab of meat on the plate vaguely resembled a hamburger steak. The odor that came from it did not. None of the other items on the plate looked like any vegetable Evan had eaten. _Or seen in a rocky horror picture show, _Evan noted as he poked at them with his fork. Everything on the plate had a similar grayish green tinge to them and slightly rubbery consistency.

"Do they expect us to eat this?" Evan whispered to April. He watched her stuff a forkful of the _meat _into her mouth. He furrowed his brow and watched her chew, swallow hard and take a drink of water. "How'd it taste?"

"It kinda tastes like chicken," April said taking another bite.

"Hey, slow down there speed racer," Evan cautioned his teammate. "We need to drag this out since you obviously don't know the meaning of the word stall!"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" April coughed, nearly choking on her food. "I stalled as long as I could Evan! I had a gun pointed at my head in case you forgot!"

"Like I could forget because oh! We were in the same room! Doi!" Evan whispered back tersely. "I took three times as long as you did even with Wilhelm pointing his rocket blaster at my head. So there!"

"Okay so what! You're the perfect prisoner and I'm just the girl," April scowled eating another bite of her food. "You better keep up your strength there big boy … because I'm not satisfied with the casual fuck."

"Oh ho ho," Evan hooted clapping his hands. "Don't you worry I can hold my own between the sheets!"

"We'll see about that!" April snapped, just to get the last word in.

_Yeah, right, _Evan chuckled to himself staring down at his meal. The diversion wasn't going to plan and he was going to have to improvise. _Again. _ The first part was foiled when April spent less than five minutes under the water. The excuse that she was taking a shower under duress was a cop out. _I stood in the same room, under the same circumstances and I was in there a good fifteen minutes. Maybe I could fake sick? _he wondered as he moved the food around on his plate.

Evan knew April was scared. All the tough talk, carefree attitude and pushups in the world couldn't hide the fear in her eye. Evan was scared too, but he was damn sure not going to let some thugs force him into having sex with her. _Mind over matter, _he kept telling himself. _My dick gets hard when I want it to get hard. _

He picked up the knife and cut a chuck of meat off the slab. He stabbed the piece with the fork and brought it up to his nose, sniffing at it like a dog. Evan stuck his tongue out tentatively to taste it. _It doesn't taste like chicken, _he thought. He closed his eyes and shoved the piece in his mouth, chewing slowly. _Do I want to puke? _he asked himself as he rolled the meat around his mouth trying to decide what it tasted like.

"Well?" April prompted him.

"Well what?" Evan choked as he swallowed and then reached for the water glass.

"How is it?"

"Ummmm," Evan grunted. He drained half the glass before he set the cup down and answered her. "That's a funky chicken."

…**~…**

The green Saab pulled in the driveway of the Bryant residence and weaved between the squad cars and crime scene trucks to find a parking space. Hank and Major Rivers exited the vehicle and walked to the house with a curious expression on their faces.

"What's going on here?" Hank said to Rivers as they walked up to the door.

"I don't know," Rivers said pulling his state department credentials out of his pocket. He flashed the wallet at the officer at the door. "Stone Rivers, State Department," he introduced himself. "Dr. Hank Lawson," he added. "We were called over by Mr. Bryant's attorney, Sterling Donovan."

The officer let the two pass and they made the way into the Bryant residence. Hank felt like he was walking through the set of a crime scene television show. Crime scene technicians, cops and photographers were crawling around the house taking samples, pictures and talking. The scene was surreal. The atmosphere in the house was dark and cold.

Hank and Rivers walked toward the kitchen, the only area that wasn't taped off, and were stopped by another police officer. Rivers pulled out his credentials again and the officer stepped to the side to allow their entrance to the room. The officer pointed to a tall suited gentleman with his back to the doorway when Rivers asked for Sterling Donovan.

"Dr. Lawson?" the silver haired man in the Italian suit asked. "I'm Sterling Donovan, Mr. Bryant's attorney."

"Hi," Hank replied nervously glancing at the law enforcement that milled around just outside the room. "What's going on?"

"It seems Mr. Bryant chose to end his life in the same flamboyant manner in which he lived," Sterling Donovan deadpanned just as the police cleared the entryway for the crime scene technicians.

Hank and Rivers turned to watch the technicians carry a full body bag down from the upper level and out the front door. Hank stepped back as Rivers walked past him to get more information from the police.

"Who is?" Hank muttered under his breath.

"Police identified her as a local prostitute," Donovan supplied the answer Hank was seeking. "There's enough cocaine upstairs to feed the north side of the island."

"You think he voluntarily ended his life?" Hank questioned. His mind was in overload trying to process the entire picture.

"There was a suicide note on his dresser," the attorney commented.

"And Tucker?" Hank muttered just as a second body bag was brought through the living room.

"Until we talk to him, he is the unknown," a police detective flashing his badge in Hank's face commented. "I understand you're Tucker Bryant's emergency contact?" the man asked, not really in question form.

"Yes," Hank answered.

"Where were you last night?" the cop asked.

Before Hank could answer, Major Rivers stepped back in the room. "He was with me," Rivers said flashing his badge at the detective. "Stone Rivers, State Department."

"You have business with the State Department?' the detective asked Hank.

"Yes," Rivers replied flatly.

"I'm working on a military contract," Hank explained getting annoyed with the inquisition.

"And you need a state department escort?" the man questioned. When no one answered him, he sighed and moved on with his questions. "When was the last time you have contact with Tucker Bryant?"

"I had an email from him a couple of weeks ago," Hank remarked.

"Were you planning on seeing him this weekend?"

"No," Hank growled. "I didn't even know he was in the Hamptons. When he emailed me he said he was spending the holiday break with his father in the city."

"Well, that's not exactly where they spent it," the detective said. "The housekeeper reported Mr. Bryant called two days ago to get the house ready for the weekend."

"What's that have to do with Dr. Lawson?" Rivers questioned the detective.

"Nothing," the attorney commented loudly. "I asked Dr. Lawson here to discuss custody arrangements for the minor child, Tucker Bryant."

"Custody?" Hank guffawed as he tried to understand what exactly happened in the house.

"Yes, this past summer, Mr. Bryant changed his will to notate a guardianship arrangement for his son, in the event that he died before Tucker's eighteenth birthday. Dr. Lawson, Mr. Bryant designated you as Tucker's guardian."

TBC


	19. Chapter 19

MSG – 19

"Let's get six jumpers in the air," Sheppard announced in the briefing room to Lorne, Teldy and their respective teams.

The energy in the room was running hot. Major Teldy and her team had gotten back to Atlantis just over an hour ago with the intelligence on the enemy ship location and the internal scans of the vessel. The three military leaders had worked out the rescue plan and contingency backup. If all went well, Evan and April would be back on the base in a couple of hours.

"Jumpers one, three and five will have full tactical teams. We'll enter the ship here," Sheppard said pointing to an exterior hatch on the ship. "Interior scans of the ship indicate Evan and April are being held in this area."

"Crew compliment on the ship is about forty, so expect resistance. Everyone arm yourself with stunners. We'll use non lethal fire, unless absolutely necessary," Lorne informed the teams.

"The weapons ports are here," Sheppard said pointing to the ship schematic. "Jumpers two, four and six will take out the weapons and provide cover fire after we decloak." looked around the room at the teams. "Any questions?"

John scanned the eyes in the room and noticed Captain Metcalf with her hand up in the corner of the room. He knew exactly where this was going and he suppressed a smile. "Captain Metcalf?"

"Who will be leading Tac team one sir," the Air Force captain asked evenly.

"I will," John replied glancing at Ronon and Teyla.

"Respectfully sir, it's my duty to remind you the expedition leader is off base. As the senior military leader, you are expected to remain at your post on Atlantis while the other teams execute the mission." Captain Metcalf delivered her obligatory speech with precision. It wasn't the first time she had reminded him and it wouldn't be the last.

"Captain, I appreciate the reminder," Sheppard replied. "You'll be in command while we're gone. Don't sink the ship."

"Yes sir," Metcalf replied with a smirk on her lips.

"Move out."

…**~…**

Sweat beaded on his forehead and ran in tiny channels to the back of his neck. For once, the cool metal floor of their cage was a comfort. His body was on fire, fighting the worst fever a man could get. It came on slowly after the meal. Nausea was the first sign, followed by stomach cramps, diarrhea and vomiting. Now his body was plagued with unbearable heat and violent tremors. The guards had come in once and injected him with some type of poison and while Evan had prayed it would make him feel better, it only amplified every ache and pain. All occurred in the small cell that he and April shared. The illness that rattled through his system was so severe he couldn't even be embarrassed or humiliated about it.

"I'm going to die," Evan gasped as he fought to take a breath. He had been experiencing a stabbing pain in his chest for several minutes and it was fast becoming a major ordeal to even breathe.

"You're not," April informed him from the side of the room. "You are not going to leave me alone."

Evan gasped and stared as the ceiling of the room. The pale gray walls swirled in a dull kaleidoscope of smears. "I'd like to stick around April," he huffed. "But I don't know if my body wants to cooperate."

"Quitter!" she yelled at him. "After all this you're just going to give up?"

"I'm so tired," Evan moaned closing his eyes.

"Evan! Evan! Do not close your eyes! Are you listening to me?" April screeched in his ears.

…**~…**

Major Stone Rivers thumbed off his phone and threw it on the counter at the guest cottage. He sighed and paced around the empty room. _A simple off world mission. We've done this three other times without a hitch, _he thought as he grabbed a bar stool. He stared at his watch. _He'll be here in twenty minutes,_ he noted just as the side door opened. Rivers craned his neck and caught sight of Divya just as she came in the house.

"Where's Hank?" she asked, dropping her bag on the bar. Her escort, Corporal Bennet, walked across the room and collapsed on the couch.

"He's at the hospital with Tucker and the doctors," he said leaning back in the chair.

"Tucker's awake?"

"Yeah, he woke up a couple of hours ago," Rivers replied. "How were things in New York?" he asked making idle chit chat.

"Both appointments were uneventful," Divya replied. "Ms Newberg was in her usual exuberant form. She even hit on Bennie." Divya looked in the young man's direction and chuckled.

"Better you than me, my friend," Rivers replied. "She's a wild card."

"That's an understatement," the corporal grunted.

"So any new information on the accident?" Divya asked Rivers coyly.

He eyeballed her carefully, wondering what information was too much. _She's fully vetted to maintain the secrets of Atlantis, _he thought mentally shrugging. "Mr. Bryant bought a crap load of coke, hired a couple of hookers and had a little party in the house before his kid came in on the bus. Apparently he strangled one of the hookers in the throes of passion; the second was dead or dying from an overdose. Then at some point he realized what had happened, made a phone call to his attorney and then left the house to pick up Tucker. His blood alcohol was point three oh… he tested positive for cocaine," Rivers said standing up and walking over to the fridge. "Now that Tucker is awake police can get a statement to the rest of the events."

Divya gasped at the details and pulled out a chair at the table to sit down. Rivers noticed the stunned expression on her face and grabbed a water out of the fridge for her.

"Colonel Mitchell is on his way here," Rivers remarked to both Divya and Bennett.

"Colonel Mitchell? Why is he coming," Divya questioned.

"Div, this situation is a little above my pay grade," River replied. "There are a lot of factors that need to be taken into consideration now."

"What type of considerations?"

"Well, for one thing, Hank is now Tucker's legal guardian, so we need to figure out how that's going to …" Rivers started to say just as Div cut him off.

"Hank is Tucker's guardian?"

"Yeah, Hank had that bombshell drop on him today. Mr. Bryant named him guardian to the kid in case of his death," Rivers stated just before he took a large drink of water. "So, Colonel Mitchell is going to have to decide whether or not we need a new chief medical officer on the expedition."

"Why would we need a new one?" Divya questioned.

"Haven't you been listening? Hank has a kid now," Rivers retorted. He gave her a perplexed look and waved his arms in the air.

"There are children in Atlantis … Jinto, Jalyn, Kaia, Torren, Maru, Shanee."

"Athosian children yeah."

"What about Dr. Abbot? He's brought his son on both his trips to the city," Divya remarked.

"First of all, he's only in the city for short term assignments and secondly, he's a single dad… he doesn't have a fallback plan for his kid," Rivers argued.

"Well, now Hank will be a single dad and having Tucker on board will give Evan something to do," Divya countered.

Rivers had no come back. He stared at her in silence for a moment and took another sip of his water. "Hold that thought for Colonel Mitchell," Rivers replied just as the transporter light flooded the living room. When the dust settled, Colonel Cameron Mitchell was standing about two feet from Divya's shoulders. "Ah, speak of the devil," Rivers muttered under his breath.

…**~…**

The view when he opened his eyes was blurred and fuzzy. It took a few minutes for any shapes to materialize in front of him. He took a few labored breaths and focused on the things he could identify… the sweat dripping down his back, the shirt that was clinging to his skin, the lumpy pillow beneath his head. A headache burned in his skull and his eyes felt like they were about to squish out of their sockets. Each time he inhaled it felt as if a ton of bricks pressed down on his chest.

He still felt like crap and was still convinced he was going to die. It depressed him a bit, but the fever rattling though his veins was warping his sense of reality. At times he felt like he was cradled in the arms of a really hot woman and other times all he could feel was the hard cold floor.

"Evan? Evan can you hear me?"

The words echoed in his ear and reverberated inside his skull. He tried to form words in his mind, but the sound never made it out of his throat.

"Evan? Please wake up," the voice said. "You're scaring me."

"Tay erwirt ove, dunkin," Evan gasped. He clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth and blinked several times.

"What? Evan!" April yelled in his ear a little louder this time.

"What?" Evan grunted with a raspy voice. He opened his eyes and stared straight up into April's. It took him a second to focus on her face and to realize the lumpy pillow he had been lying on was her leg. "Where are we?"

"The same place we've been for the past twenty four hours you idiot," she growled. She pushed his head off her leg and felt no remorse as it bounced off the metal floor.

"Ow!" Evan grumbled as his skull made contact. "Thanks." He closed his eyes and licked his dry lips with his cotton laded tongue. "How long have I been out?"

"Six hours," April replied.

"And the guards just let me be?"

"No, they've been in here a couple of times," April replied with an attitude.

"Doing what?" Evan asked as he tried to push up on his elbows to look at her. He made it up on one, got dizzy and stopped.

"The first time they gave you an injection of something which just made you sicker. The second time, they carried you out into the hallway and hosed down the cell," she remarked. "And you … because umm… you were really sick."

Evan snarled his lips at the thought and rubbed his hand across his chest. It was then when he realized he wasn't wearing his uniform anymore. Instead he was dressed in something that resembled a long gray shift.

"I guess they gave up on forcing us to mate," Evan grumbled. He rolled over on his side and curled his knees to his chest.

"For now any…," her voice trailed off as the floor shook violently. She stood up and stepped to the door, putting her head against the metal just as an explosive wave rattled the floorboards.

"Get away from the wall," Evan coughed out as April stumbled and practically fell on him. "Careful."

"Agh!" April screamed as the door buckled and knocked her on her butt. She landed hard on her wrist and rolled over in pain, cradling her arm. "Frick," she cursed as another blast rocked the ship.

"Gawd, please tell me that Conan the Barbarian is going to come crashing through the door," Evan moaned as the explosion tossed him against the wall.

Less than two seconds later, he got his wish.

TBC


	20. Chapter 20

MSG – 20

Divya walked through the living room area of the guest cottage and spotted Hank asleep on the couch. It was late, nearly midnight and she knew for a fact it was the first rest he had gotten all day. She walked to ottoman, opened the lid and pulled a throw from the storage compartment. Unfolding it, she stepped to Hank's side and carefully draped it over the man.

"Div," Major Rivers called to her coming down the stairs. "Oh, sorry," he whispered when he caught her waving at him to shut up. He inclined his head toward the entryway and walked that direction expecting her to follow.

"I just spoke to SGC," he said in a hush when she got closer. "They've rescued Evan and April."

"Are they okay?" Divya questioned visibly relieved.

"Sounds like it," he said. He shoved his hands in the pocket of his jeans and leaned against the wall. "How's Tucker?"

"Better, but still in critical condition," Divya commented. "He'll stay at Hamptons Heritage until he's stable enough for transport."

"And then he'll be transferred to Andrews?" Rivers asked.

"That's what Colonel Mitchell advised today," Divya replied. "Hank and I both spoke to him about Tucker's future."

"Did you lay the _kids in Atlantis _speech on him," Rivers asked with a grin.

A smile crept across Divya's face and a blush flourished on her cheeks. "I may have planted a seed," she conceded. "This is all a little sudden for Hank. I don't think he's there quite yet."

"He's not there yet?" Rivers chuckled at her response. "He better catch up quick. In a few days, the Air Force is going to transfer that kid half way across the country to Andrews. They aren't taking that step for a casual visit," he informed her.

"You say that like you know that Tucker's been cleared for transfer to Atlantis," Divya remarked.

"Yeah, well, while you were planting seeds … I was plowing the fields," Rivers commented. "Andrews is the holding facility while we get clearance to go the final leg."

"You did that for Hank?" Divya asked with a perplexed expression on her face.

"No, I did that for Teldy," he replied. "If Hank doesn't go back to the city, she's going to be an impossible bear to work with for the rest of my tour."

…**~…**

John Sheppard ran his hand over his eyes and looked at his watch. _Zero three thirty earth time,_ he thought as he headed to the infirmary. They had been back for two hours. The tac teams had debriefed and gone to bed. Sergeant Tobin was lead in control for the overnight shift. Lorne and Teldy were finishing the mission reports, even though John had told them to go to bed, twice. He needed to hit the rack himself, but just needed to wrap up this final piece first.

The infirmary was quiet. Six beds were still occupied by those that had been injured during the attack. Two contained visitors from other worlds needed some type of treatment. John weaved through the beds and around the corner until he spotted the person he was looking for.

"Hey Evan," Sheppard called out as he neared the bed. Evan was lying on his side, curled in the fetal position, which was not much different than how they had found him. He looked pasty and still really sick, even though Phillips had pumped him full of saline solution and anti nausea medication.

"Colonel," Evan replied with a raspy voice.

"Feeling any better?" John asked the younger man.

"Not exactly," Evan moaned. He shifted on the bed to try to get more comfortable. "But I am extremely happy to be home."

"Oh, well, I'm glad you are considering Atlantis your home now," John said with a chuckle. "I thought you should know, April said that you saved her life."

A grimace of emotion covered Evan's face as he tried to process the words. "I hardly saved her life," he finally groaned. "She did a fair amount of sticking up for herself on her own."

"Well, she said you stalled with the guards a few times and saved her from something very unpleasant," John countered, trying to butter the man up.

"You mean saved myself from something unpleasant, although now that she thinks I save her life, I guess I didn't save myself from anything," Evan snarked. He rolled halfway onto his back. "If she starts acting freaky deaky, do I have permission to shoot her?"

"I've already spoke to Dr. Goldberg about her save-me issues," John said carefully. "So it won't be necessary for you to resort to extreme tactics."

"Good," Evan mumbled. "Cuz right now, I can barely think straight much less fight her off."

"Yeah, I hear ya," John nodded. "I got word to Hank that you're safe."

"Agh, Henry," Evan moaned closing his eyes. "Phillips said something about Tucker." Evan ran his hand slowly across his forehead. "Is he okay?"

"The latest report is that he's stable. He'll be transferred to Andrews in a few days and then if all goes well, they'll come through the gate in a couple of weeks."

"Hmmm," Evan grunted trying to wrap his brain around it. "His father kill himself?"

"Something like that," Sheppard replied. "I'm sure Hank will brief you when he gets back." He patted the younger Lawson on the shoulder. "Get some rest."

"Yeah, thanks," Evan said opening his eyes slowly. "Thanks for saving my ass."

"Anytime."

TBC


	21. Chapter 21

MSG – 21

**Month five**

An aggressive woman in bed is extremely hot. Maybe it's the idea of being her sex slave or not having to be the one to take the lead. Maybe it's the way she forces a man down on the sheets and then painstakingly nibbles and licks every square inch of a guy's skin. It drive a guy crazy … nearly mad. And makes the ensuing sex really really good.

It was evident Evan was in for some trouble the second his door slid open. The Daedulas had landed and one junior officer had made a beeline for his quarters. The sight of her standing there was more that welcomed. It had been awhile since he had had any action. _Not for my lack of trying, _he noted as Lieutenant Karin Simon teased his heat with her clit.

_Oh shit, _he thought just as she impaled herself on him. He would have screamed or shouted or even just moaned, but her lips were super glued to his face. And that was okay because _oh gawd, shit, that's ah … hmmmm, yeah. _

…~…

"This is my place now?" Tucker asked as he walked around the room.

"Yeah," Hank replied leaning against the desk.

The Daedulas had landed two hours ago. Their first stop was the mess hall for lunch and then a quick tour of the city and now Hank was settling Tucker in his room. _He's tired, _Hank surmised watching the kid stare of the window. It had been a long month.

Dealing with his injuries from the car accident would have been a major life changing event for anyone, yet Tucker had more to deal with than that. His father had killed a prostitute, killed himself and had every intension of taking Tucker on his deadly ride as well. Only by some miracle, Tucker survived and now Hank was tasked to pick up the pieces.

Tucker amazed him in so many ways. In some ways he was just an average sixteen year old and in others he was sixteen going on thirty. Stuck in boarding schools and with a nanny all of his childhood, Tucker learned to fend for himself at a young age and did so in a fairly mature way. He won over General O'Neil and a handful of other IOA personnel to be allowed to follow Hank to Atlantis.

"And I'm really on another planet in some other galaxy far far away from Earth," Tucker questioned turning back to look at Hank.

"Yeah," Hank remarked sheepishly.

"That's so weird," Tucker muttered turning to walk to the bed.

"Yeah, it takes so getting used to," Hank agreed. "And outside the city things are pretty low tech … so there won't be any video arcades to hang out in."

"Hank, you did not just say that. That is so wrong," Tucker chuckled. "Arcades are so yesterday."

Hank chuckled as he watched Tucker slump down in the bed. The kid was tired that much was obvious. He was a long way from being healed. The upcoming weeks would be filled with physical therapy with Teyla, therapy sessions with Dr. Goldberg and school work. The contained environment of Atlantis was the perfect backdrop for his recovery. Tucker had been up for it since day one … and Hank was slowly making the adjustment to being a father to him.

"Okay, well, get some rest," Hank said pushing off from the desk. "My room is two corridors over and Evan's is one floor down," he added walking toward the door. "If you need me…,"

"Yeah, I know, call you on the radio," Tucker said as he drifted off to sleep.

…**~….**

"Dr. Lawson!"

Hank slowed his gait and a smile crept across his face. He knew that voice and missed that voice this past month. He turned his head and watched Major Anne Teldy jog the last few steps to his side. He tried to play it all professional while other expedition team members passed but the urge to sexually attack her was a little overwhelming.

"Major Teldy," he greeted her officially for the ears in the corridor. The sight of her nearly took his breath away. _She's really hot in her uniform, _he mused as his eyes roamed over her. Maybe it was the 9 mil strapped to her thigh or her skin tight uniform top that was strategically unbutton for him to catch of glimpse of her cleavage. Or her brown hair tied back from her neck in a loose pony tail. Or those piercing blue eyes of hers that told him some different from the words that escaped her mouth.

"I'm glad you're back," she said. Her voice was a little husky. "It was a long month."

"Yeah," Hank replied looking around the hallway. "It was a long time," he mumbled glancing back at her.

She inclined her head to the right and the two started walking down the corridor. "Tucker all settled in his room?" she asked making idle chitchat.

"Yeah, he's taking a nap," Hank remarked.

"A nap?" Teldy questioned. "He's not a toddler Hank."

"Okay, wrong choice of words," he admitted. "He's sleeping. I think the trip wore him out. Hey, wanna have dinner tonight to get to know him?"

"Yeah," she mumbled steering him down an empty isolated corridor. "I'd like that," she whispered as their lips connected roughly.

There wasn't a need for conversation after that. The electricity between them escalated quickly. _A month was a really long time, _Hank repeated in his head as he sucked on her lips, neck and chest. The mood was frantic for both, both needed to connect in ways that only mother nature could understand. The buttons of her shirt were undone in a second and her front clasped bra unsnapped so he had better access. While Hank manipulated her breast with his tongue, Anne worked to free the button of his jeans and lowered the zipper.

"Ugh," Hank moaned when she latched onto his heat. Her hand stroked his shaft roughly and her fingers traced the edge of the head. "Hmm, Anne," he whispered into her neck.

Getting his hands down her pants was easy enough. It didn't take him long to realize she was ready for him. _And I'm ready for her, _he noted as he leaned back just enough for Teldy to lean over and unsnap her thigh gear. Teldy had one boot off and her pants free of her right leg before Hank had even managed to push his pants down his thigh.

"You weren't missing me or anything were you?" he asked, pinning her up against the wall.

"You should talk," she whispered wiggling her hips to line his cock against her clit. He was hard and she was ready. "Wait," she panted pulling a foil packet out of her shirt pocket. "Condom."

Hank just chuckled and took the packet out of her hand. He ripped it open and slid the latex glove on tight. Teldy was already hitching her leg up around his waist. Hank pulled her body tight against his and the pressed his heat against her box, shoving himself in hard and deep.

"Hmm, Hank," Teldy moaned into his mouth. She locked her legs around his hips and hung her arms around his neck.

The friction between them was boiling hot. It had been a long month but it didn't take long for either lover to hit their apex. The roughness between them was a catalyst for their building organisms. Hank's hips moved quick and fast, sawing into Teldy's core. She matched his thrusts as best she could and then stilled as her entire body shuttered to an abrupt halt. Hank followed her quickly when her muscles clamped down and squeezed the life out of him.

"Geezus, Anne," he groaned as the pressure became too much for him to take. He moved his hand from the wall to her breast and squeezed her nipple hard just as he lost it. A few seconds went by before either participant made any sound other than heavy panting.

"Gaw… Hank," Teldy moaning dropping her legs to the floor. She watched as he carefully pulled back from her muff. Once he was clear, she reached down, stuck her leg back in her pants and pulled them up. "Welcome home," she whispered as she put herself back together.

Hank pulled the condom from his dick and stuffed it into a tissue. "I hope that was just the appetizer," he mumbled pulling up his pants.

…~…

He loved sneaking up on her. Divya was intense and consumed in her work, which made it easy. _Not always a good thing, _Sheppard considered as he glided through the infirmary lab and walked up behind her. He put his hand over her mouth and chuckled as she jumped and struggled against him for just a second and the relaxed against him.

"John," she moaned turning in his arms. "Not nice."

"Yeah, not nice that you've been back in the city for three hours and haven't even come looking for me," he said pinning her against the table. There were other lab techs in the room, but no one really paid them any attention.

"I was told you were off world," she informed him.

"I've been back for two hours," he replied defensively.

"You didn't come looking for me?" Divya questioned.

"I don't need to look," John said leaning in close to her lips. "I sent one of my minions to find you." He captured her lips with hers for a brief second and stepped back politely. "I just got out of a meeting with Woolsey."

"Ah, the truth comes out," Divya remarked. She ran her fingers down his arm affectionately. "Are we getting together later tonight?" she asked with a mischievous grin on her face.

"Maybe. Did you have something in mind?" he asked looking at her with a curious expression on his face.

"Perhaps," Divya smiled. She arched her brow at him.

"Hmm, I'll take that under advisement then," Sheppard said leaning in for another kiss. "I'll let you get back to work," he added backing away from her lab table.

…**~…**

"Evan to Hank."

The frantic scream from his brother echoed across the room, even though Hank didn't have his ear piece on. It jarred him from his sleep and he jerked straight up, waking Major Teldy in the process.

"What's wrong?" Anne asked as she looked around the room wildly.

Hank held up his finger and grabbed his radio. "Evan?" he answered by keying mic.

"I need to see you right away," Evan pleaded.

"Ev, it's the middle of the night," Hank groaned running his hand across his face.

"Dude, it's an emergency," Evan stressed. "I'll meet you in the infirmary."

"Okay, okay," Hank sighed tossing the clip back on the night stand. "I have to go," Hank informed Teldy looking down at her naked breast.

Hank walked into the infirmary ten minutes later and found Evan pacing nervously. Lieutenant Karin Simon sat on a bed looking equally freaked out. He eyed both of them and sighed trying to decide what the latest crisis was.

"Dude, you've gotta help us," Evan said as soon as Hank was close.

"Okay, what's wrong?"

"We've had ah …. _malfunction," _Evan whispered arching his brow at his brother.

"A what?" Hank questioned not understanding what he meant.

"A condom _malfunction," _Evan said explaining little more.

"Oh, the condom broke," Hank remarked nodding his head. "I can prescribe some medication for that." He started to head for the pharmaceutical cabinet when Evan stopped him.

"Yeah, she's going to need that too …but ugh, it's a little more complicated than that," Evan said to his brother, grabbing him by the arm.

"Okay, like how complicated?"

"Ugh, the condom came off and it's umm… stuck…," Evan stammered trying to say it without saying it.

"The condom is stuck inside Lieutenant Simon?" Hank said to confirm what Evan wasn't saying.

"Yes," Evan said sounding relieved. "And there's really good possibility that there's more than one."

Hank nodded his head and said nothing. _I hate doing pelvic exams, _he mused as walked toward the bed that Lieutenant Simon was sitting on. "Are you sure they're not just in the bed?" he questioned both participants.

"No, we checked," the young lieutenant mumbled ducking her head.

"And I tried to fish it out but I couldn't find it … them," Evan said quickly. "Which makes me wonder where it ... they went? I mean, how deep is that … thing.. the v? Huh?"

"Okay, Evan, you need to leave," Hank said patting his brother's arm. Hank pulled a gown out of the storage cabinet above the bed and handed it to Lieutenant Simon. He took her by the arm and walked down a couple of beds to one of the surgical suites. "Lieutenant, you'll need to change into this and have a seat on the bed," he said directing her into the room. Hank noticed the Evan was following him and he turned to shoo him away.

"Evan, go," he said pushing him the other direction.

"Wait … what if…," Evan stammered. "If something haps..?"

"Evan, I can give her something just in case, so there isn't any chance of little Ev's running around," Hank replied firmly.

"No, I'm not talking about that," Evan replied. He fidgeted around a second.

"What?" Hank implored quietly. "You're acting like you got your hand caught in the cookie jar."

"It's just that she told me she had slept with someone else on the ship recently," Evan said. "So what if the condom coming off means she poisoned me? I'm young. I want to have fun in my life … I don't want to get some crazy disease that is going to ruin sex for me," Evan whispered hoarsely.

Hank looked at his brother and noticed an expression of humiliation on his face. He understood Evan's predicament. _He survives being captured by the enemy and then is cursed for life by an STD. _"I can test you for any possible STD's," Hank said to reassure him.

"Can I get an STD on my tongue or lips?" Evan asked with a pained expression on his face. "I want to be able to enjoy sex Henry. I want to have kids someday."

"Will you relax?" Hank said pushing him out of the hallway back into the main infirmary. "You're over reacting. Go away."

…**~…**

_I really hate doing pelvic exams. _The words flew through his head as he slid the speculum into Lieutenant Simon. He repositioned the light and did a quick exam. He found both of the condoms right away and pulled them out with the forceps.

"Okay, I got them both," he informed the lieutenant as he dropped them into the container the med tech was holding. "Karin, I'm going to do a scraping now to run through the lab," he said as he pushed the swab and collected a sample. He handed the swab off to the tech and pulled the speculum out slowly.

"Okay, all done," Hank said standing up. The med tech helped the lieutenant to sit up and handed her a handful of tissues. "Angela will get you an emergency contraceptive to take tonight. You might have some cramping, which is completely normal. Just take some ibuprofen for that."

"Thanks Dr. Lawson," Simon replied sheepishly.

"No problem," Hank replied stripping off his gloves. He sighed off on her chart and handed it back to the med tech before heading out the door. Hank got barely down the hall before Evan appeared out of the shadows.

"What happened?" Evan questioned him as he walked.

"Ev, stop," Hank commented heading across to his desk. "I can't tell you anything."

"She's my girlfriend," Evan argued.

"And she's my patient," Hank remarked.

"Henry!" Evan protested.

"Okay, you want some advice? How about buying condoms that fit? That way they won't fall off and get jammed up inside your partner," Hank said just as a med tech walked by and handed him another electronic chart.

_Great! _Hank thought as he stared at the chief complaint. _I didn't want to go back to bed anyway. _

TBC


	22. Chapter 22

MSG – 22

**Month Seven**

He hesitated outside the gear room. The butterflies in his gut made him sick to his stomach, yet he felt like he needed to man up. _Living in the Hamptons is worse than going off world, _he told himself firmly. He sucked in some air and walked through the door.

"Hey Tuck!" several of the marines in the room greeted him. "First off world mission huh?" The cat calls and ribbing made him forget why he was nervous a mere two seconds ago.

"Mr. Bryant!" Major Rivers yelled as he entered the room. "Corporal Bennett will assist you with your off-world gear and escort you on the surface."

"Looks like you're stuck with me," Tucker commented to Bennett as the young corporal turned and handed him the gear.

It took a few minutes, but Tucker managed dress appropriately to complete his geological and biological surveys with Dr. Fuller and Dr. Weiss. Among the scientific tools, his gear included a firearm, which he had spent the past two weeks learning how to fire and prayed that he would never have to use. Ten minutes later, Tucker emerged from the gear room with Corporal Bennett. He walked slowly to the gate room, fiddling with the leg strap and the tac vest that covered his uniform. As he came up the stairs, he noticed Hank waiting for him on the landing.

"Goose," Hank called as Tucker hit the top of the landing. "You nervous?"

"Honestly, I feel like I'm going to barf," Tucker remarked.

"Oh, well, that's normal," Hank said calmly. "Everyone feels that way their first time through," he added.

"Don't worry doc," Rivers said walking down the stairs from control. "I've made it back from every mission I've led." He patted Tucker on the shoulder and adjusted the computer tablet attached to the Velcro on the back of his vest.

"I'm not worried," Hank tried to argue.

"Ha!" Rivers laughed. "Spoken like a father the first time his kid goes out of a date. Besides the only person in need of a babysitter on this trip is Dr. McKay."

"I heard that Rivers!" McKay grumbled as he came down the stairs.

"Good, well, now that we have that settled," Rivers mumbled turning to take a head count. "Dial it up!" Rivers voice bounced off the walls.

Tucker scanned the room of those on the off world team, twenty in all. Major Rivers and his team were leading the mission, Dr. Fuller, Dr. Weiss, Dr. McKay, Evan and Divya made up the bulk of the participants. Tucker and a handful of technicians filled the rest of the slots. While most were all there on some official business. Tucker was just there to get some fresh air and to finish his homework.

…**~…**

The planet looked like Earth in every way; in fact, Tucker had a hard time believing that it wasn't. The dead giveaway was the lack of super structures in the horizon, the missing cell phone towers or the buzz of overhead planes. Instead, for as far as his teenage eyes could see, Tucker viewed trees, grass, more trees and more grass.

_Boring, _he thought as he collected a soil sample. He documented the location and conditions and stuffed the sample in his pack. He glanced back at the group of scientist behind him and stared as they got excited over some weed. _I could be playing wii right now,_ he reminded himself as he kicked at the dirt with his feet. He turned on his heel and wandered aimlessly through the grass.

Life on Atlantis wasn't bad. It wasn't the Hamptons or the excessive life style his father had reveled in, and honestly, Tucker was okay with that. The toys and the money were nice, but never really satisfied him. Not that roughing it in Atlantis did, but not every kid got to live a gazillion light years from earth. The irony was there weren't a lot of kids that could imagine the Hamptons lifestyle either, so in an odd way, Tucker still remained one of the privileged.

He was privileged in more ways than one. Nearly all his life he was starved for a relationship with his dad. A normal relationship…like normal kids had, but Marshall Bryant didn't have time for that. Being stuck in a boarding school and watched over by the house staff were the norm for him and those rare opportunities for parental bonding were overshadowed by alcohol and drug use. The saving grace in his life was when he met Hank.

Hank had saved his life the first day they met. He stood up to his dad a few days after that and carved a friendship with the teenager that he would never forget. Hank was all the things that Tucker wished he had in a father. As tragic as his real father's death was, he couldn't have been happier that Marshall Bryant choice for his guardian. _Otherwise I'd be living with Aunt Ida in Lake Forest, _Tucker mused as he walked mindless across the field. _Hank saves me every day. _

"Is that water?" Tucker mumbled aloud as he turned to head through a tree line. He stopped to take another soil sample amidst the foliage. "Is that Evan?" he muttered as he looked through the trees at two figures standing about twenty feet away. The voices were loud and arguing. Tucker stood and started to walk toward the voices.

…**.~….**

"Major!" April yelled at Stone Rivers as he walked back to the base camp from the village. Divya and Evan and a marine tagged behind him carrying a variety of medical gear. "Tucker is missing."

"What do you mean missing?" Rivers questioned her feeling every hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He chided himself as he rethought the security assignments. Bennett had gone with Rivers to the village. Tanjee and Leon had stayed with the science team.

"Missing as in gone," April said glaring at him. "No one has seen him in about fifteen minutes and he's not answering the radio."

"Who the hell was watching him?" Evan blurted out. "What happened to his personal security detail? He's a hemophiliac! He could be bleeding to death somewhere!"

"Okay, relax," Rivers said trying to downplay his panic. "He's sixteen not six and fifteen minutes to a teenager is just a couple of seconds." Rivers turned his radio to the scientist channel and tapped his ear.

"Rivers to Bryant." _Kid you better answer me otherwise you're dead meat. _The words rolled around in his head while Rivers considered the ten ways Sheppard was going to kill him for losing Hank's son. After a few seconds went by with no answer, Rivers called him again. "Rivers to Bryant, respond."

A bead of squelch clicked off on the line and Rivers looked around to take a head count of the scientific team. _Six, ten, twelve, _he ticked off. "No one touch their radios!" Rivers yelled at the group. "Rivers to Bryant, respond," Stone said again into the radio with a little more urgency this time.

Another click of static.

"Tucker, click twice if that's you," Rivers instructed. His mind was reeling at the endless possibilities of why the kid wasn't answering. Maybe it was something as simple as the radio was broken. _But knowing my luck, Tucker fell out of a tree, _Rivers mused just as the radio clicked twice.

"Click once if you're okay, twice if you're not," River said. He made eye contact with Divya and held his breath. Three long seconds counted down before two more clicks came through the line. "Dammit," Rivers cursed under his breath.

"Tucker … where are you?" Evan jumped in on the radio. He turned around in a circle and scanned the horizon. His eyes settled on the trees. "Did you go into the woods? Click once for no, twice for yes."

Two clicks and everyone let go of the breath they had been holding.

"Are you still in there?" Evan asked and waited with baited breath for a response. After several seconds nothing happened.

"Where's McKay and Rhys?" Rivers asked taking another head count. He watched the scientist looking around wildly before anyone responded.

"I thought they were checking out some readings by the river," one of the technicians finally said.

_Great, _Rivers sighed. _Not only do I lose the doc's kid, but now the Colonel's pet is gone! _ "Rivers to McKay," Rivers snapped over the radio. There was no answer, even though Rivers yelled for him twice. Stone paced around in a circle and then started to hand out assignments. "Okay, split up into teams of three. Tanjee stay here with Miller. Divya and Evan, you're with me."

…**~…**

"Stop flailing around!"

From a distance, it looked like a scene from a b-rated comedy flick: one person flipping around in the river like a fish out of water and two people trying unsuccessfully trying to assist. Up close, it was clear the two people trying to help might have been able to do so successfully if the injured would have remained still. Of course that would have meant he would have drowned….a minor detail.

"Dr. McKay, please," Tucker pleaded. "Just lay back," Tucker added sloshing around behind the man in the neck deep water.

"That's easy for you to say! When I do that, my head goes underwater!" Rodney yelled as he struggled to stay upright.

Tucker looked at Brent Rhys, the physics technician, and nearly burst out laughing. He had discovered the two when he came through the woods. McKay was yelling at Rhys about everything the man had no control over … the weather, the river, the fact that he got his shoes wet. Rodney was none too happy that Tucker had wandered up, but he couldn't really send him away. So he enlisted Tucker to help with his experiment. Then the whole thing went south.

It started when McKay made a unilateral decision to take the trio up on the side of a cliff above the river. Getting up there was easy enough, but once they were on the rock's edge, the ground seems a little shaky. Both Rhys and Tucker tried to tell the mad scientist that … but he rallied back with a litany of big words that meant nothing to either man. Six minutes after McKay insisted the rock face was stable, the whole cliff collapsed into the drink.

All the time spent in the pool worked in Tucker's favor as he managed to twist around and hit the water in dive formation. The ice cold water chilled him to the bone as he sliced through it. A few rocks bounced off his legs as he descended. He tried to put it out of his mind as he swam to the surface. Once he made it to the top, Tucker looked around for the other two and spotted Rhys treading water just a few feet away. McKay popped up a couple of seconds later, panicked stricken in the ice cold water. Rhys got to him first and the three made their way to the bank. Their current predicament happened when they were in waist deep water.

Tucker and Rhys were to the right of McKay, trudging through the last few feet of water to the bank. Rhys had his arm protectively around Tucker, helping him to the shore. McKay was grumbling about everything again, only worse this time because all three radios were water logged. Then one minute McKay was there and the next he wasn't. Falling in some type of sink hole, McKay plunged out of site right in front of their eyes. When he came up for air, he was mysteriously stuck. His foot or leg was caught on something below and pulled McKay down every time he tried to go up.

"Just lie back against me," Tucker said to Rodney. "I'm right here." Tucker put his arm on Rodney's shoulder.

"Oh, right, like I'm going to lay on you? You might bleed to death and then that's all I'd need to make an enemy of the chief medical officer," McKay rambled.

"Like that would be a crisis," Rhys chuckled not able to hold it in anymore.

"I heard that Ricky!" McKay growled. He thrashed around in the water some more, splashing all three of them.

"It's Rhys … R-H-Y-S!" Rhys yelled at McKay. "Why the hell can you not remember a guy's name? I'll tell you why … because you don't give a shit about anyone outside your precious little circle!" The younger scientist threw his hands in the air and stomped around in the water.

"Okay, that's not going to help anything," Tucker said flatly. "Dr. McKay you need to relax. All this thrashing around is just going to jam your foot in there more. Rhys, chill," Tucker said wiping his forehead with his arm.

"Tuck let me do that," Rhys said noticing for the first time the kid was getting a little pale. "You get out of the water and up on the bank." He slid in behind McKay and pointed Tucker to the bank. "Go … now!"

"I'll try to get the radio working," Tucker said as he trudged through the water like a drunken man.

"That's a great idea," Rhys said. "Let's talk through it together okay?"

"Yeah," Tucker grunted. He took two more steps through the waist deep water and fell into a hole just like McKay had. The difference was the drop was only a few feet, however the lack of solid ground beneath his feet caused him to take a header into the water.

"Tuck! Shit!" Rhys yelled. He dumped McKay to retrieve the kid from the water.

"Hey!" McKay yelped as he sunk fast to the bottom of the pond. "I'm drowning here!" he gasped the next time he surfaced.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch," Rhys yelled as he pulled Tucker out of the water and helped him to the bank. He pulled his radio out of his vest and tossed it at Tucker. "This was pretty protected, so play around with it and see if you can get it working," he said running back in McKay's direction.

"I can't stand up here!" McKay screamed frantically. "I nearly died the last time I was dunked!"

…**.~….**

"I'm getting a radio signal from over there," Evan said pointing upwind from their current location.

"Why the hell would McKay hike all the way up there?" River grumbled as the three headed in that direction. "He doesn't walk more than five feet without a jumper."

"Maybe he lost track of his steps," Evan replied shrugging his shoulders. Rivers was right about McKay, the guy was fricken lazy. And it didn't just have to do with walking either. _Maybe he was attacked by a giant lemon, _Evan thought just as Rivers started swearing behind him.

"Geezus!" Rivers cursed. "Rivers to Tanjee. Contact Atlantis and get a jumper dispatched to the river ASAP. We've got people in the water."

"What?" Divya blurted out. She pulled a pair of binoculars from her pocked and scanned the area that Rivers was focusing on. Sure enough, Dr. McKay and Brent Rhys were flailing around in the water. She panned left and spotted Tucker sitting on the bank, looking a little wet. "Tucker's on the bank."

"We need to get up there!" Evan said starting to run up toward them.

"Wait! Lawson!," Rivers commanded tapping the radio. "Bennie I need you at the river like yesterday. Everyone else return to base camp." Rivers scanned the river line and pointed downstream a few hundred yards. "Cross there," he said jogging back down the river bank.

…**~…**

The jumper had barely settled in the jumper bay when the rear hatch was lowered. Hank, Phillips and a plethora of medical personnel stood waiting on the sidelines for their patients. Dr. Phillips started triaging as soon as Ronon carried McKay out of the back and laid him on awaiting gurney. Bennett assisted Evan as he hobbled out, draped in a wool blanket. Rhys walked out under his own power. Sheppard and Rivers brought Tucker out to a very relieved Hank.

"I started the factor eight as soon as the jumper landed," Divya reported as the two maneuvered Tucker down the ramp. She followed closely behind holding the IV bag. "His vitals are good. Temp is a little low though."

"The water temp was about fifty degrees," Rivers commented.

"We got all four out of their clothes right away and put heat packs under their arms," Sheppard reported. The two military officers lowered Tucker down on the cot.

"There are no obvious deformities of his legs or arms," Divya added. "He's complaining of pain in his right ankle and he has bruising on his legs and torso."

"I felt rocks hit me after I fell from the cliff," Tucker said between shivers.

"When?" Rivers, Divya, Sheppard and Hank all asked at once.

"As you were going down or in the water?" Divya clarified the question.

"In the water," Tucker gurgled. The trembling was so strong, Tucker could barely speak. A med tech covered him with a heated blanket and tightened the straps on the gurney. She reached over and took the IV bag from Divya.

"Okay, let's get him to the infirmary," Hank remarked. He looked at Rivers and Divya. "You two need to get out of those wet clothes and report to the infirmary for a checkup."

TBC.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: Sorry this took so long. My internet service was on the fritz, you know when you live in the sticks, modern conveniences are hard to come by.

MSG – 23

The hot water was steaming up the room. Divya peeled out of the BDU's and t-shirt and threw them in her hamper. She shivered as the room air touched her skin. It had been hours since the jumper had come back to the city, but Divya was chilled to the bone. She walked to the shower stall and tested the spray with her hand. _That's a little too hot, _she thought as she reached in to adjust it. Counting to ten quietly, Divya gingerly stepped in to the warm stream and dunked her whole body in the spray.

She wasn't in there long before she had company. Even though she was expecting him, she jumped when he stepped behind her.

"Your skin's still cold," Sheppard said as he rubbed his hands down her arms.

"I feel a deep chill," Divya replied. She leaned back against his skin.

"Oh, well, lucky for you, I can do something about that," he chuckled as he captured her lips with his.

"You could have warmed me up in bed," she purred into his ear. "What took you so long?"

John turned Divya around and backed her up against the shower wall. "I had to play mediator in the infirmary." He braced his right arm against the wall above her head and ran his left thumb over her jaw.

"Is Rodney still complaining about his broken leg?" Divya asked as she teased his nipples with the pads of her fingertips.

"Actually it wasn't Rodney," John said following her lead and trailing his hand slowly down her chest to breast. He cupped her perfectly shaped goblets in his hand and pushed his thigh against her mound. "_Hank and Tucker," _John said arching his brow.

"Hmm," Divya hummed. She looked up at Sheppard and moved upward to brush her lips across his chin. Their lips connected softly and they slowly nipped at each other until Divya pushed her tongue into his mouth. She sucked in his lower lip.

John reciprocated by wrapping his arm around her waist pulling her closer to him. It pressed his erection against her stomach. The friction took the encounter up a notch and John's kisses because rougher and deeper. He cupped her face with one hand and slid his other to her mound, teasing her folds with his fingertips. John felt Divya's hand wrap around his heat. His eyes rolled up in the back of his head as she started to stroke it roughly.

"Oh, hmmm, Div," he moaned into her mouth as they broke contact. He looked down into her dilated eyes. Her lips were swollen and moist. Her skin flushed and her mound, hot and wet.

"John," she whispered. She looked up into his hooded eyes. She could feel his fingers stroking her clit, dangerously teasing her folds, threatening to push into the forbidden garden. Oh, she wanted to oblige him. John knew how to push her buttons. Knew exactly where to touch to evoke a sensation like no other. Took her to planes no one else had achieved. She sucked in a breath as he circled her nub and squeezed a nipple between his thumb and finger. Divya felt her head arch back on her neck and she closed her eyes at the pleasure it produced. She could feel the wetness between her legs and it wasn't just the shower either. A slow burn was building in her belly, an ache to be warmed from within.

He knew what she wanted. She could barely contain herself; her hips were swirling against his hand. She was stroking his heat slow and seductively. It was all a sign to him. The road he was about to travel was not his normal route. The oddity of it was exciting and from his experience with her he knew exactly how to play it. Luckily for him, the ancients must have had the same idea in mind when they designed the showers. A wide edging ran the circumference of the shower. The center was at least two inches deeper, which made a very convenient strategic advantage for his five eleven frame.

"Div," he moaned, his voice was husky with desire. He pulled back from her grasp and turned her face first into the wall. He reached over for the shower gel and squirted an ample amount into his hand.

Divya felt John's hand on her back slowly working down her skin in lazy circles. His breath was hot on her neck when he got to her buttocks. She bit her lip as he slid between her cheeks. His knee was nudging her legs apart just as his finger made contact with her hole. Divya's whole body shuddered as John pressed against her puckered skin.

"Shhh," he hissed in her ear. "You want this?" he asked as he peppered hot kisses along her neck.

Divya rolled her head back and turned slightly to connect with his lips. The kiss was messy and wet, filled with water, salvia and an answer her mouth couldn't formulate. She felt John's hands sliding over the hair at her mound and deftly landing right on her clit. It nearly distracted her from the two fingers he pressed into her bum. She rested her head on the shower wall and pressed her hands against the tiles.

The pressure John was putting on her was driving her crazy. Her clit was overly aroused and every twist caught in her breath. His fingers on her backside never stopped moving, brushing in and out against her sensitive skin. A low moan escaped from her throat. She tilted her hips outward, a silent invitation for John to take the next step.

John removed his finger and grabbed a hold of his rod. He reached for the condom he had left on the soap dish and fumbled with the foil packet. It took an extra second to roll on the latex. He rubbed the head along her crack until it slid into the opening he had just unlatched. When he was lined up perfectly, he moved his hand to her hip and gradually pushed into her anus_. _ He felt her body tense as he entered the space and whispered nothings into her ear to relax her. John gritted his teeth at the tight space. The friction nearly squeezed an orgasm out of him before he was ready. He bit his lip to hold back and began to slowly move, grinding into her.

"Jaaa," Divya gasped. She could feel him deep inside revving up to give her the relief she needed. John was big and she knew it pained him to go slow, but any faster scared her.

"Gaw, Div," John choked. He was unconsciously holding his breath, forcing his stroke to be slow and deep as opposed to fast and rough like he wanted. That's how he would have normally played it. If Divya had been any other woman, he would have slept with her on the first date, had sex with her rough and crazy a couple of time and then broke it off without another word. Divya wasn't any other woman and this relationship was all new ground for him.

Divya had told him after a month of casual flirting, lunches and ice cream that she was virgin. It surprised and challenged him all at once. He had arrogantly proclaimed to himself that she wasn't going to be a virgin when she left Atlantis. When she informed him of her family's customs and a bride's expectation, John thought for sure he would get bored with the anti-sex relationship in a week. Seven months later, he was as hot for her as he had been that very first day. And the anti-sex relationship was steamier than anything he had ever experienced with another woman. There was something mysterious and erotic about not taking it to the pinnacle. In fact, most times John and Divya just participated in touching and kissing. Occasionally it involved a dose of oral sex and once in a great while … times he could count on one hand … Divya allowed a bout of anal sex.

John quickened his thrusts, finding just the right rhythm. It was a tight space and John felt pinched in the most erotic sense of the word. He needed to play it just right because he wasn't going to last long. He slid his hand back to her folds and started to tweak her nub between his thumb and finger. Div was hot and slick with her juice. He dipped his fingers into her core …. not too deep and pulled his fingers out. He brought them up to their mouths. He sucked the juice from one finger and then traced her lip with the other.

"Bak…," Divya hiccupped, unable to form any intelligent thought. Her orgasm was burning in her belly and damn John … why did you have to stop? "Agh … Ja," was all the protest she could muster when his fingers left her muff.

His fingers were covered with her scent while they traced her lips. Before she could lick his finger she felt her walls tighten and her body freeze in motion. Divya reached back and grabbed John's hand resting on her waist. "Stop," she whispered with a desperate tone.

John chuckled in her ear. He felt her body respond to him, the muscles clamping down on his energy. He thrust into her a few more frantic times before the hot knot in his back let go and he stumbled against her. "Agh shit!" he yelled loudly as liquid fire escaped from his body. John tried to hold his body in place for as long as possible, but gravity won the war. He felt his knees start to buckle and leaned against the wall as he slowly pulled out. "Geezus," he muttered as he pulled off the condom and tied it in a knot. He tossed it into the corner.

"Cheee, Divya," he moaned rolling to the side and directly under the water from the shower head. He pulled her trembling body along with him and cradled her in his arms as the warm water washed over their skin. "I love ewe," he mumbled into her hair.

"Me too," she moaned into the crook of his neck. Divya lifted her head and met his swollen lips with hers.

"Are you warmer?" he whispered breathlessly.

"Hmm, yes," she sighed nipping at his lips lightly.

"Colonel Sheppard, please report to the gate room immediately," demanded the city wide page.

"Frick!" John muttered closing his eyes. "I'm glad I could appease you," he informed her as he cupped her face for one final kiss.

"I'm might need another treatment later," Divya said with a sly grin.

"The same kind of treatment?" he asked coyly.

"Perhaps," Divya answered vaguely.

John hesitated in letting her go. He sighed heavily and took a step toward the sink. "Huh, I'll be ready," he mumbled in her ear as he reached for the towel.

…**~…**

"Henry, you wanna get some dinner?" Evan asked his big brother as he hobbled into the infirmary on his crutches. He found Hank sitting at the work bar messing around with some test tubes and his lap top. _Making it all look good, _Evan noted because he had witnessed Hampton and Hank in probably the biggest shouting match he had seen in a very long time. It was all over Tucker's care and at one point got so out of control ridiculous that Colonel Sheppard and Major Teldy had to break up. And then in a wild-card move, Sheppard relieved Hank of duty. So it was clear to Evan that Hank was just making up an excuse to hang around Tucker in the infirmary.

"Yo, brother. Dinner. Mess hall," Evan half repeated.

"Yeah, I could eat," Hank said glancing toward a row of beds at the far end of the room. "Hey thanks for sa… helping Tucker today."

"It's no problem, really. I getting good at rescuing people these days, although Tuck was out of the water when we got to him and honestly didn't need any saving," Evan replied calmly. "That kid is a lot tougher than he looks."

"Yeah," Hank replied absent-mindedly. "Do you think I'm over protective?" he blurted out.

"Ah, yeah," Evan retorted. "He's been living alone for a good part of his life and lately you've been smothering him." Evan leaned against the table.

"When were you going to tell me that?" Hank replied with an incredulous expression on his face.

"When you asked … because if I had said it before hand you would have told me to shut up," Evan commented. "Look, Tucker has been living the life of a fifty year in a mid life crisis that's for sure and he's starving for parental attention … but you don't have to give it to him all at once. His life had been jangled up enough the past few months. He just needs your support and guidance, not the nagging."

"I nag?"

"Hell yeah you nag … I've lived with you nearly all my life, remember?" Evan remarked just as his stomach growled. "Okay, back to my original question … do you want dinner? Cause I'm starving and I can't exactly carry the tray with my bum leg."

Hank leaned over to examine Evan's cast and smiled. "I do a nice job casting don't I," he remarked.

"If it makes you feel better then yes," Evan said hopping around on one foot. "Other than its over kill … my ankle was barely sprained, it hardly needed a cast."

"Your foot was fractured," Hank informed him.

"Okay, yeah … if it takes your mind off things, cast away! But really, Henry. I need food soon or I'm going to pass out."

"Okay, okay," Hank replied standing up from the stool. He made one last glance down the row of beds.

"Knock it off dad," Evan remarked making his way to the door.

…**~…**

"What is it?" Sheppard asked as he jogged up the stairs.

"Thanks for joining," Rodney snarked as he frantically typed on a lap top. "Busy with the Queen?"

"There an alien ship just outside the solar system. We're receiving a vid transmission from Sir Praetor is demanding to speak to our leader," Major Rivers reported from his seat in command. He practically talked over Rodney's babbling.

_Why is it on all the days Woolsey could leave for a meeting on Earth, it has to be the day bad guys want to kick our asses? _John thought as he walked over to the monitor. He stared at the ship and waved at Rivers to open a comm line.

"Colonel John Sheppard, what can I do for you?" John said, drawing himself in to an authoritative posture.

The screen crackled to life and the same three men stood on the other side. "I'm Sir Praetor. I demand that you release the chosen ones."

"Just so you know, which should be obvious since we've already been down this road, we don't take kindly to our people being turned over to the enemy," Sheppard said flatly.

"The chosen ones are needed to complete the ceremony," the man said.

"Yeah, let's talk about that as well. On our world it's not acceptable to force two people to be intimate. Intimacy is a mutual… consensual thing," Sheppard said waving his hand around to make his point.

"The chosen ones don't have a choice."

"They don't have a choice?" Rodney yelped from behind the console. "Must be some weird thing in your Neanderthal world."

John looked down to the floor. He wanted to yell at Rodney or roll his eyes at Rodney or any number of other things, but the comment worked in his favor. The startled expression and subsequent muffled conversation between the three men bought Sheppard some time to rethink his strategy.

"How do you know Evan and April … that's their names by the way ….are the chosen ones?" John asked.

"They were in the designated area," the Praetor replied simply.

John turned to Rivers and waved at his throat to cut the feed. "They were in the designated area? What the hell does that mean?" John asked the group.

"Looks like Phillips was right," McKay remarked shrugging his shoulders. "He _did _say they took the wrong couple."

"The chosen ones …. Was supposed to be Divya and me because we were in the chair room," Sheppard replied. He nodded quickly. "Rodney have you figured out how to circle the block without a big footprint,"

"Sort of," Rodney replied with a grimace. "I wouldn't want to do it unless absolutely necessary because it's going to take a lot of power."

"In five minutes, we might be there. Open the line back up," Sheppard instructed Rivers. The screen popped back to life and the Praetor was standing there looking really ticked off. Sheppard didn't give him a second to make any comment. "Okay let me get this straight … Evan and April are the chosen ones because they were in the chair room when your goons barged into our base?"

"They are the chosen ones because they responded to the propellant," Sir Praetor replied simply.

"The propellant," Sheppard repeated. _The gas that affected Div and me, _he confirmed mentally as he looked at Rodney and Rivers. "And what does that do exactly?"

"Prepares them for the coming."

"The coming of what?" Rodney asked loudly.

"These questions are pointless Colonel," the praetor said clearly annoyed with the stall. "It is their destiny to fulfill the ceremony."

"Well, that may be the case on your world, but it doesn't happen that way on ours," Sheppard remarked.

"To hell with your ceremony, April isn't here anyway," Rodney blurted out over Sheppard's shoulder.

Dead silence filled the room. The praetor stared wordlessly into the monitor and Sheppard delivered an ice cold stare in Rodney's direction. It was a true statement. April had left for Earth with Woolsey. It did nothing to help Evan, or John or Divya's predicament.

"The female is …," Praetor mumbled in shock.

"She's dead," Sheppard said quickly to stop any further commentary from McKay. "She died just after we rescued her from your ship," he said trying to force the blame on them.

"She died because she did not fulfill the coming Colonel," the praetor remarked slowly. "Her death lies in your hands."

"She died of food poisoning," Rivers said loudly. "We tested her body fluids after her death and determined she had an adverse reaction to the food you gave her while she was in captivity. Her death lies in your hands."

The Praetor stood motionless for a few seconds and then the screen went blank. The three men shared glances and waited for something to happen.

"Guess you told him," Sheppard muttered to Rivers. He moved the monitor to see if the sensors were still detecting the ship. "Rodney, cloak the city and prepare to take us downstream."

"On it," McKay replied tapping on the laptop. "Cloaking in five, four, three, ta…"

"Just do it without the fanfare," Sheppard growled.

"Emph … okay, we're cloaked," McKay hiccupped quietly. Just as the screen came back to life.

"We need proof that the chosen female is dead," the man said.

"Ahhh, exactly what kind of proof do you need?" Sheppard asked.

"We need to come to your city and scan for her," the man said simply.

"Ah, na na na, that's not going to happen," Rodney retorted.

Sheppard felt every hair on his neck stand on end and his mind ran in six directions. "What do you mean scan for her?" he asked aloud.

"The propellant leaves trace markers in the system. Once we are within range, our equipment will be able to pick it up."

"And if you find that she is no longer here…." Sheppard began to say.

"Because she is dead," Rivers added quickly.

"As we have already told you, then what?" Sheppard questioned.

"We will leave the sector," the praetor said.

"Just leave, that's it … no more shooting at us for no unexplainable reason?" John threw it out there just to get a real answer out of the man. "Because the first time you approached us a few months ago, you said we had invaded your territory."

"We are not accustomed to other viable ships in this area of space," the praetor replied.

"And now … what? You are and have decided to be civil?" Rodney questioned.

"Suffice it to say, we can learn to tolerate your company."

"As long as we let you search the city for our dead crewman," Rivers commented loudly.

"As long as we can confirm the female is in fact no longer in the city."

"Perhaps that can be arranged," Sheppard replied quietly. "On our terms of course.

TBC


	24. Chapter 24

MSG – 24

Hank stared at the image on the medical scanner and shook his head. He had run scans on Sheppard, Divya and Evan and all had come up clear.

"I don't see anything here that they can scan for," Hank said looking at Sheppard and Rivers.

"Nothing?" Sheppard questioned. "Nothing they could have implanted in our systems?"

"Look for yourself," Hank said turning the cart toward him.

"What about our blood work?" Sheppard mumbled as he stared at the screen. "Phillips said there was some weird readings right after Div and I were infected?" John glanced to the side where Divya was standing.

"I'm still waiting for the results of the lab tests, but the scan would indicate anything strange," Hank replied.

John pursed his lips and rested his hands on his hips. It frustrated him that some aliens had better technology than they did and were using it against him.

"I say you, Div and Evan take a jumper to the mainland and cloak until they leave," Rivers said. "Teldy and I will supervise their sweep."

"I daaaa … I don't want to be gone from the city when they are here nosing around," John said waving his hand in protest.

"Let's have them meet a security detail on a neutral planet and gate in," Teldy countered. "The three of you could wait in the underwater jumper bay."

"In a jumper. Cloaked. With a security detail," Rivers replied emphasizing each contingency. "We'll only allow our guests to go as far as the chair room."

Sheppard looked from Rivers to Teldy and the expressions on their faces told him that his third and fourth had it under control. "Okay, you two are in charge, but stay in contact with me over the radio. Contact SGC and have Woolsey, Lorne and April stay put until further notice. Have McKay to pick a planet and set this plan in motion."

…**~…**

Evan watched Sheppard pace the length of the jumper. _Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. _Evan rolled his head on his shoulders and cracked his neck, arms, knuckles, back and was about to try hips when Divya glared at him.

"Evan!"

"Yes?" he questioned innocently.

"Knock it off," she growled.

"What? I was starting to cramp up," he replied defensively.

"You've done it six times in the last hour," Divya informed him.

"Well, it's not any different than the colonel wearing down the rubber of his boots," Evan retorted. A second later John smacked him on the back of the head. "Ow!" Evan yelped. "What was that for?"

"A warning shot," John informed him. "It's a lot different."

"Geez," Evan hiccupped. "How much longer will we need to stay here?" he asked rubbing the back of his neck.

"That is a good question," Sheppard remarked resting his arms on the gear net above the seat. "And I don't have an answer. I guess we'll know when Major Rivers give us the all clear."

"I still can't believe you're letting those goons search the city for us," Evan mumbled lying back on the bench seat.

"What would you rather they did? Storm the city and take you by force again?" Divya replied.

"Well, since technically I'm not the chosen one, they wouldn't be looking for me," Evan commented.

"How do you know they didn't implant something on you when you were on their ship?" Divya questioned.

"I probably was considering I was injected and poisoned when I was visiting them!" Evan laughed. "But if you'll remember …. which, in case you've forgotten I'm sure April will tell you … I shit and puked my guts out in our cell."

"Thanks for the graphic Evan," Sheppard replied walking past the two of them.

Evan watched Divya reach out and catch his hand with hers. _They're so in barfy love it's pathetic._ Evan twisted his lips keeping a close eye on the famous couple, while pretending to look the other way. He stared at his watch and sighed. They had been trapped in the jumper for ninety minutes. _I really hope I don't have to use the bathroom anytime soon. _

…**~…**

McKay stared blindly at the ceiling. To say he was counting sheep was an understatement. His mind was trying to rewrite the laws of the universe while his body just tried to get warm. _Why the hell can't I get warm? _He pulled the blanket a little closer to his chin. _My teeth are chattering! Oh, why do I always have to be the one that falls in to the water?? _He glanced to the left where Tucker was sleeping. _And then I get yelled at for endangering the kid?? Like it was my fault he climbed up on that ledge. _

"How's your leg?" Dr. Phillips asked walking up to his bedside.

McKay stared at the young doctor. He was military all the way, buzz cut, BDU's, even the lieutenant insignia on his collar blared out his air force status like a neon sign. But the air force lieutenant didn't have much time for rank and protocol. "Doc," McKay gurgled from under his blankie. "It's sore."

"Well, it should be considering that it's broken in two places," Phillips remarked staring at the electronic chart. "Hampton set it nicely. You'll be on crutches for a couple of weeks. I think off world rock climbing adventures are off the itinerary for a while."

"Don't worry," Rodney half growled. "That wasn't a planned excursion."

"Really?" Phillips said sarcastically. "I was kinda wondering about that, since you are hardly the hang off the side of a mountain kid of guy."

"I thought I could get better measurements up there," Rodney retorted defensively.

"Okay … buy why make Tucker go up there?" Phillips asked.

"I didn't … mayk…. he could have said no!" Rodney argued.

"Is that your perception? Both he and Rhys said you insisted that he climb with you…."

"I did not insist," Rodney snarked cutting him off. "I merely suggested he follow to … ah," his voice trailed off and his cheeks flushed red.

"Carry the gear?" Phillips finished the sentence for him. "Did you know he is a hemophiliac?"

"So what!" Rodney grumbled. "I'm allergic to lemons."

Phillips started laughing at Rodney meager comparison. "It's hardly the same."

"Whatever, we fell the same distance. I got hurt 10 times worse than he did and everyone was fawning over that twerp!" Rodney shuffled around on the bed. "I could have drowned."

"You could have drowned?" Phillips remarked as he adjusted the monitor above Rodney's head. He slid a blood pressure cuff on McKay's arm and pumped it up. "Tucker could have bled to death just from the impact of falling in the water." He slowly released the pressure off the cuff and documented the reading. "You understand that don't you?"

"Yeah, I'm a doctor remember?" Rodney replied indignantly. "He shouldn't be here if he's so dainty."

"Well, some could say the same about you," Phillips said leaning over Rodney's body and pressing his ice cold stethoscope against his skin.

"Hey!" McKay guffawed loudly. "I am not dainty and fragile."

Phillips stood up and prepared a syringe of morphine. He injected it into McKay's IV line and then watched the stats on the monitor as the medication took effect. "No, you're not… but you are a hypochondriac with child like tendencies," he commented just as McKay's eyelids started to droop.

"Yes I am," Rodney agreed sleepily.

…**~…**

Phillips chuckled at Rodney and pulled the curtain divider out from the wall to provide some sort of barrier between McKay and Tucker. He stepped around the curtain and picked up the tablet on the side table next to Tucker's bed. He was in the process of downloading the latest vitals when Tucker opened his eyes and looked up at him.

"Hey doc."

"Hey Tuck," Phillips said scanning the data quickly. "How'ya feeling?"

"I'm fine," Tucker said pushing up on the bed. "But I need to take a leak."

"Ah, let me help you up," Phillips said setting the tablet down on the table. It took a few minutes to unhook the tubes and wires tangling Tucker to the bed. Once he was free, Phillips handed him the crutches and walked along as Tucker hobbled over to the latrine. Tucker was just coming out of the bathroom when Sir Praetor and his entourage made their sweep through the room.

The motley group of oddly redressed men stopped in front of bathroom door and stared at their equipment for a second. Then slowly their eyes traveled to the left, right to where Tucker Bryant was standing in the doorway of the restroom.

"This boy is sick," one of the men said.

"Yes," Rivers answered walking swiftly to Tucker's side. "As I told you in the corridor, this is the infirmary where those who are ill rest under our medical team's care. Mr. Bryant hurt his leg earlier today and is on bed rest until tomorrow." Rivers stood next to Tucker and fiddled with his P-90.

"His injured leg is not what I was referring too, Major Rivers," the man said. "This boy has a bleeding disease."

"I da," Tucker mumbled in shock.

"Why do you think that?" Dr. Phillips said loudly walking in front of the group and blocking any attempt to step closer to Tucker.

"Our instrument can detect such a thing," the man replied simply. "Some on our world are born with such a disease and we have developed ways to cure it so they may live normally until old age."

"Your people have a cure?" Tucker questioned. He tried to step forward, but Rivers and Phillips cut him off.

"Okay, tours over folks," Rivers said abruptly. He motioned to the box in the man's hand. "Did your little gizmo find anything about the chosen ones?"

"No," the man replied crisply. "It appears the chosen one is not on the base as you stated earlier."

"Okay, then if you'll follow me, I will escort you back to the gate," Rivers remarked brusquely.

The group nodded and turned to leave the room. The Praetor walked slowly pasted Tucker eyeing him like a piece of raw meat. "Major Rivers, in the interest of good faith, my medical people would be willing to share our research for Mr. Bryant's condition."

"Great. We'll take that under advisement," Major Teldy said loudly as the group filtered out of the infirmary.

"Wait!" Tucker blurted out. "They have a cure for hemophilia?" he hobbled out of the door way a few steps before Rivers and Phillips stopped him.

"Hey, whoa slugger," Rivers said collaring him.

"But …"

"No buts, Tuck," Rivers replied turning the teenager around. "Teldy is right, we'll take it under consideration … but not when they have their slimly hands around our nuts." He shrugged his shoulders and pointed at Dr. Phillips. "Back to bed," he added just before he turned and jogged out of the room.

Tucker watched him go and then looked at Phillips. "Do you think they really have a cure?"

"Doubtful," Phillips said flatly. "You're talking about a group of people that attacked our city, took two of our team hostage and tried to force Evan to rape April. It is probably just a ruse to try to get in the back door of the city."

Tucker shook his head and limped back to his bed. "You military types are paranoid," he muttered.

"Well, being paranoid saves our asses," Phillips remarked following the kid. "And by the way … I heard you Hamptonites aren't much better."

Tucker laughed as he stopped next to the bed. "Yeah, I guess, but the motivation is a little different."

"Oh yeah … instead of marauders with guns, you have the national enquirer and camera men."

Tucker smiled at the comparison. "Yeah, something like that."

…**~…**

The sound of the rear hatch lowering woke Evan from his slumber. His eyelids fluttered open and he stared straight ahead at Divya. The inside of the jumper was dark and the light spilling into the small craft was a little bright.

"Geez," Evan slurped as he sat up on the bench. "How long have we been..?" he gurgled.

"Eight hours," she said. She stood up and stretched her arms over her head.

"Where's Romeo?" Evan asked looking around the ship wildly.

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to call him that," Divya scolded him.

"Yeah, okay … except that you've been smitten by him since we got here and he seems a little pussy whipped around you," Evan replied. He saw movement to his left and turned his head enough to see Sheppard and Rivers standing there.

"All clear," John said with a blank look on his face.

"It's about time," Evan grumbled. He stood up and walked down the hatch into the jumper bay.

As he passed Sheppard, John hooked his arm enough to pull him in close. "I am not pussy whipped," he whispered tersely.

Evan pulled away from Sheppard and trailed his eyes from the colonel back to Divya, still standing on the ramp. He chuckled sadistically and the averted his eyes back to Sheppard. "Well, luckily I know Divya. Maybe not as good as you, but I get her," Evan remarked with a smirk. "So I'm just going to leave it at that while I find an empty latrine and a huge plate of food."

Sheppard stood speechless. He watched Lawson walk away with a few marines in tow. He glanced back toward the jumper to see Divya slinking up next to him. "He thinks I'm pussy whipped," Sheppard said. He put his arm around Divya protectively.

"He's right," Divya deadpanned.

…**~…**

Between the scraping of chairs and the occasional coughing outburst, this staff meeting was no different than the five thousand others he had attended in his career. Woolsey droned on and on about city business, the department heads all gave uninterested reports about whatever experiments they were working on and Dr. Hampton reported on the latest happenings in the infirmary … conveniently leaving out the two of them had practically gone to blows of Tucker's patient care. _Okay, maybe I was a little out of control, _Hank decided as he stared blankly at the table top. _I'm turning into a freaky dad. Ugh, I hate that kind of parent. _

"Dr. Lawson?"

Hank looked up and saw twelve sets of eyes staring at him. "What?" he mumbled when he realized they had asked him something.

"What part did you miss?" Hampton asked with a smug grin on his face.

"Ugh … all of it," Hank admitted.

"Hampton did you cut off his circulation with that choke hold?" Lorne chuckled from the side of the table. "Maybe some of our CMO's brain cells died."

"Choke hold?" Woolsey spat out with a stunned expression on his face. "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," Hank, Hampton and Sheppard said in unison.

"The aliens made some comment in the infirmary that they had a cure for Tucker's hemophilia. Do you want to pursue it?" Hampton asked Hank.

Hank furrowed his brow and darted his eyes from Hampton to Sheppard. "They said that?"

"When they entered the infirmary, Tucker was just coming out of the head and they scanned him with their little device," Rivers said. "Then made a comment that they had a treatment for his bleeding disease."

Hank arched his brows in thought and glanced at Hampton. "How likely is that?"

"Not very," Hampton agreed.

"But in an effort of good faith we might want to investigate," Woolsey remarked. "We do have to share the quadrant with them."

"Well, that's going to be problematic," Sheppard remarked. He leaned back in his chair and swung it to the side.

"How so?" Woolsey inquired.

"The aliens claimed the gas left a marker in our systems," Sheppard remarked. "That's why they had to come here and search the city."

"In the report, you stated you allowed them to do their survey to prove that April wasn't on base," Woolsey questioned.

Hank watched the banter between the expedition leader and the military commander and was intrigued by the relationship. Sheppard piece-milled the information to Woolsey on purpose. John gave just enough information to force him to ask the next question. If it perturbed Woolsey, the man never let on and the banter was quick. Hank watched Woolsey nod his head in thought.

"I suggest Major Lorne and Major Rivers lead the negotiating teams," Woolsey finally concluded. "Dr. Lawson, Dr. Hampton, you should accompany them to determine the validity of the treatment."

"And when are we going to do this?" Hank asked glancing around the room at the varying responses from the military leaders.

"In a week," Sheppard replied quickly not letting Woolsey make that decision. "Or eight."

TBC


	25. Chapter 25

MSG – 25

**Month Eight**

It was similar to Grand Central Station at five pm. People were coming and going, equipment was being rolled in, rolled out. Shouting and whistles all in a parade of sounds that echoed off the wall. The only thing that set the chaos apart from the massive train station was the whoosh of the gate.

Hank surveyed the action from the balcony next to control. His team was to disembark from Atlantis in a few minutes. He was waiting in the wings trying to look busy.

"You're busted Hank."

Hank chuckled and turned around. He held his hands up in surrender to his accuser, one Tucker Bryant. "I'm just waiting for my dial out," he said innocently.

"You don't leave for another fifteen minutes," Tucker reminded him. "My dial out is next." Tucker fiddled with the computer tablet that was velcroed to the back of his vest. "Can you?" he mumbled motioning to his back.

"Yeah," Hank replied readjusting the tablet. "I know I promised to lay off the super dad routine," he started to say before Bryant cut him off.

"Yes, I know to be careful and don't worry I won't be jumping off any cliffs this trip. Yes I'll listen to whatever Evan tells me to do, even if I don't want too because he's like my pseudo guardian when you're not around and no, I will not rough house with Evan because he's delicate and I might hurt him," Tucker rattled off with a smile on his face. "Did I miss anything?"

"Ah, nope," Hank replied with a smile. "You got the lecture down pretty good."

"And you're going to be back in two days?" Tucker asked him.

"Yup, by Thursday," Hank said patting Tucker on his back. "Hey, want me to see if Libby is back in town while I'm there?"

"No," Tucker balked shaking his head. "I'm over her man. She's too high maintenance for me."

Hank watched the black haired kid's face turn about four shades of red and laughed at the innocence of it. "This wouldn't have anything to do with a certain Athosian would it?" he questioned. "Do I need to be worried about your visit to New Athos?"

"It could have something to do with Shanee," Tucker mumbled trying to shrug it off as no big deal. It wasn't working because his face was suddenly blotched red and his neck was really really hot. "And I'll be on my most gentlemanly behavior on New Athos."

Hank laughed at the kid's behavior. A year ago Tucker was an overly independent sixteen year old. Just a few months ago he was going through gadget withdrawal. Then Teyla introduced Tucker to Shanee and suddenly the privileged trust fund laded child was in puppy love with the young warrior princess. Regardless of how innocent Tucker looked standing in front of him at this moment, Hank's parental instincts were in over-drive. Athosian females were a little more aggressive than Earth females. And Tucker was a red blooded American boy.

"Aren't you going to Earth alone with Major Teldy?" The young man tilted his head and gave Hank the _I know what you're up too _look.

"Ah, yeah," Hank conceded. "But I'm an old man and you're …. not."

"Mr. Bryant, front and center!" Lieutenant Becker yelled up at the young man.

"I know that look Hank," Tucker said grabbing his backpack. He swung it over his shoulder. "I'll behave, I promise. Besides condoms are standard survival gear."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Hank muttered watching Tucker run down the stairs. "Evan! Keep an eye on him!"

"Relax dad!" both Evan and Tucker said at the same time.

…**~…**

"Ah, ah, ah," Evan muttered over his shoulder to Divya. "Shanee sighting at two oh clock."

"Evan," Divya chuckled casually looking up to see Tucker approach the Athosian teenager. Shanee reminded her of Libby in a small way. Shanee had light hair, happy brown eyes and a natural beauty that didn't need make up or an uptight heavy maintenance hair do to compliment it.

"What, oh…oh my gawd," Evan moaned just as Tucker took the girl's hand and walk away with her. "Young love …. Look he's blushing."

"Evan! Stop staring at them," Divya scolded him. "You'll make Tucker nervous."

"What? Nervous!" Evan laughed. "Like that kid hasn't been nervous a day in his life. Oh, wait, here he comes." Evan coughed and looked down at the blood samples that Divya was collecting.

"Ev, Shanee and I are going for a walk," Tucker said quietly.

"Did you collect all your homework samples?" Evan asked without looking up.

"Yes," Tucker responded.

"And you ran the soil test for Dr. Birch?" Evan said finally glancing at the kid. "Because you know, he's been on my ass about it all morning."

"Yes, Evan. I collected the water samples and the dirt for the slides and ran the test," Tucker replied impatiently. "Divya watched me."

"Did you?" Evan asked her. He watched her nod without saying a word. He saw the look in her eye… the _don't ask me anything because I'm about ready to start laughing _expression. "Ah, okay," Evan said covering for her. He looked at his watch. "Okay, let's synchronize our watches. It's eleven thirty five. You need to be back here no later than ah …umm…," Evan hemhawwed trying to stall the teenager and his over active libido.

"Let's say I'll be back by sixteen hundred," Tucker said looking at his watch.

"What? Are you kidding? That's five and a half hours unsupervised," Evan protested.

"Yeah and last summer I was left to my own devises without getting into trouble," Tucker argued.

"That's different," Evan commented. "In the Hamptons you had video games and Ferrari's to occupy your time. Here you have Jessie James wannabes with sling shot guns and dirt bombs stalking you."

"And just as I told Hank. I promise to behave," Tucker replied with an annoyed tone.

"Okay, fourteen hundred and not a minute later," Evan conceded.

"Fine," Tucker said caustically.

Evan watched the two practically run from the table and turned toward Divya when he heard her chuckle aloud. "What was that? Thanks for the backup!"

"I'm sorry," she giggled covering her mouth with her hand. "They're so cute together."

"Yeah, they're cute alright," Evan scowled. "Tucker is about to get his cherry popped and if anything bad happens, like I don't know … he gets an STD, I'll probably get blamed for that."

"Evan!" Divya yelped. "He's a responsible young adult. I'm sure he'll take the necessary precautions."

"Oh, so now you're advocating teenage sex?"

"I'm advocating young love," Divya replied. "He didn't have sex with Libby. I'm sure he'll do the right thing and practice prudence with Shanee."

"I'm sure that will be Tucker's intentions," Evan agreed. "I'm not so sure about Shanee. She is a walking hormone."

…**~…**

"What do we have left for immunizations?" Divya asked Evan as they packed up their gear. They had been giving medications to the children from five area villages all morning. The shots would protect the villages from the alien versions of influenza that had been crippling the outlying worlds.

"We have," Evan announced looking at his tablet, "twenty of type a, fifteen of type b and seven of type c. What do you have?" he asked to ensure they matched.

"The same," she confirmed. She zipped the bag shut and set it down next to the rest of their gear. Divya reached over to pick up the second gear back and unzipped it to take the inventory.

"What about the antibiotics?" Evan questioned looking over at her. "I show that we should have three vials of penicillin and thirty tabs of cephalexin."

"Yes, I didn't give any out," Divya agreed. She did a quick check of the pain meds. "I have forty tabs of aspirin and fa….."

"You gave out ten aspirin?" Evan interrupted.

"I didn't give out any aspirin," Divya said.

"Are you sure?" Evan commented. "The manifest says we left with fifty."

"What?" Divya said grabbing the tablet from him. She stared at the item count and then looked back into the med pack. She pulled the foil aspirin packs from the box and recounted. "Forty," she said flatly.

"So we're missing ten," Evan said. "Well, think about it … did you give any out and just forgot? Maybe you got distracted or maybe one of Becker's men had a headache?"

"No," Divya remarked. She was annoyed and it showed on her face.

"Okay, let's move on," Evan said clearly noticing her facial grimace. "Six bags of saline?" he watched her nod and then rattled off the rest of the medical inventory that they brought to New Athos and didn't use. At the end, it wasn't just aspirin that were unaccounted for. The total drug count was ten aspirin, an entire box of Tylenol along with gauze pads and other dressings. "Don't we have to report that to someone?"

"Yes," Divya replied tossing the bag down by the others. She looked at the stool where the bag had sat and then kicked it across the small tent. "Dammit!"

Evan stared at her wide eyed not understating why she was so upset. "Div, it's aspirin, Tylenol and some band aids," Evan said trying to down play it. "Maybe someone has a sliced up arm and a really bad headache."

"I doubt it," Divya snarled. "What if a child took them because they thought it was candy?"

"Agh, I hardly doubt that any child would think aspirin were candy. They are bitter and chalky..," Evan rambled.

"And in this galaxy a treat can take many forms," Divya remarked. "If a child takes aspirin while they have a viral infection there is a risk of contracting Reyes Syndrome or any number of other things. Ten tablets taken at once could be considered an overdose and affect the liver ….cause stomach problems, bleeding …and the Tylenol? "

"Okay, Div, relax….take a breath," Evan said holding his hand up. "Evan to Becker," Evan called for the team lead over the radio.

"Becker."

"Could you meet us in the medical tent? We've got a problem," Evan reported. He looked over at Divya. "Sit." He pointed at the chair and crossed his arms at his chest.

…**~…**

Colonel Sheppard, Major Rivers and Ronon walked down the path from the gate in an unhurried fashion. It was a nice day and the ten minute hike to the village was good exercise. That was the only good thing about this trip. A routine medical mission had changed to a case of petty theft with a twist. Besides the missing medication, Becker had reported a nine millimeter hand gun and a tac vest MIA as well.

"The Athosians aren't petty thieves," Rivers commented as they walked. He tightened his grip on the P-90 out of habit. "So maybe someone just misplaced the weapon."

"How could you misplace a gun?" Ronon grumbled. "Wouldn't it be obvious that something was wrong when the thigh holster felt a little light?"

"Agh, yeah, there is that," Rivers agreed as he walked.

"And what about the tac vest?" Ronon added.

"What about it?" Rivers replied.

"Did one of the marines just take it off?"

"How do we know it's one of the marines?" Rivers remarked. "There is medication missing as well. Maybe it's Divya or Lawson's weapon."

"Or Tucker's," John added trying to deflect the responsibility from his girlfriend. "Maybe he lost it in the weeds when he was getting all freaky with his little la…"

"Shh," Ronon hissed as he pulled his weapon and went into high alert. A crashing footfall could be heard through the trees and the two Air Force officers followed suit. Ronon stalked the tree line like a panther. A second later the quiet lion faced his prey head on as Tucker Bryant and Shanee tumbled out of the weeds.

"Freeze!" Rivers ordered before he saw who it was.

"Don't shoot!" Tucker blurted holding his hands up in surrender. All three lowered their weapons and gave Tucker a look that could melt ice. "What are you guys doing here?" he asked trying to play it off casually even though his heart was beating in his throat.

A six year old memory of holding a gun in Jinto's face flashed through John's mind. _Now that kid is training to be a security officer, _he thought slowly lowering his weapon.

"The question is what are you doing here?" John asked walking closer to the kid. He eyed the thigh holster and noted the nine mil was intact. "Don't you have some homework project to be working on?" He pulled Tucker's side arm out of the holster. He checked the magazine and then slid the weapon back in the thigh holster while Tucker tried to explain himself.

"I'm ah do… I mean I did. I did it. Divya checked it. Shanee and I were just … and we were supposed to be bah .. but kinda got turned arom and now were ..late … we're late…," Tucker stammered watching Sheppard check out his weapon. He glanced at Shanee with a confused expression on his face. "Evan told me to be back by two."

"Yeah, you're late all right," Ronon chuckled.

"So, what? He sent you guys to find me?" Tucker questioned.

"No… err… wow!" Sheppard guffawed. He reached out to turn Tucker's head to the left, exposing the side of his neck to Ronon and Rivers view. A huge red, black and blue hickey took up the right side of his neck and top of his shoulder.

Rivers whistled loudly and stole a quick glance at an embarrassed Shanee. "What exactly were you two doing in the woods?" Rivers asked the teenagers.

"Nothing," Tucker replied defensively. He pulled his head out of Sheppard's hand and tried to take a step back, but Sheppard stopped him.

"Easy killer," John said pulling an ice pack out of his tac vest. "Didn't anyone ever tell you that getting a hickey could be dangerous?" He popped the chemical pouch inside the pack and shook it until it started to get cold.

"Because it leads to sex?" Tucker growled. "Yeah, yeah, I got the sex lecture at school."

"No, because a hickey is a bruise and a bruise occurs when small blood vessels break under the skin. And for someone with hemophilia, even the smallest bruise could be a very big deal," Sheppard replied in his father knows best voice. Tucker probably didn't need the ice pack, but John felt he had an obligation to play _Scared Straight _with the teenager. He pressed the ice pack against Tucker's neck.

"Hold that on your neck until we get to the village," John instructed him. He motioned for the group to start walking again and rolled his eyes when Shanee ran over and slinked up next to Tucker.

"Ain't young love grand?" Rivers whispered when the two love birds were a couple of feet in front of them.

"Oh yeah," John chuckled. "And somehow I've suddenly turned into my father."

…~…

While Becker and his team paced the outside of the tent waiting for a higher authority from Atlantis to show up, Divya sat on a bench inside and contemplated her morality. People were asking a lot of questions and she didn't have any answers. Div could feel Evan sitting across from her, but she didn't dare look up into Evan's eyes for fear of what she would see. Being inattentive to detail wasn't in her nature. She was a stickler for procedure and protocol ….so what happened today to skew that? The question kept rolling around in her head and for the twenty minutes Becker had left them waiting in the med tent, she was no closer to a plausible answer.

"What time is it?" Evan blurted out, breaking the heavy silence that filled the room.

"What?" Divya muttered pulling out of her fog.

"Time, what time?" he repeated patting his pants pockets wildly until he turned his wrists to look at his watch. "That little shit!"

"What?" Divya questioned still not understanding what he was freaking out about.

"It's two thirty!" Evan squawked. He jumped up from the stool and bolted from the tent in search of Tucker Bryant. He ran right into Colonel John Sheppard.

"Going somewhere Evan?" John asked about two seconds after he veered out of the way of Evan's charge.

"Ah, yeah, well, I don't actually have to be … if one of you guys has seen Tucker," Evan said. He sucked in some air and felt like he had been corralled by the cops.

"He's over there," Ronon said pointing to the center of the Athosian village.

Evan glanced to where Ronon was pointing and focused his eyes on the black-haired teenager.

"Hank's going to freak," Rivers commented. "He's got a huge hickey on his neck."

"A hickey!" Evan blurted out. "Oh my god, he could bleed to death!"

"Relax, it's just a bruise," Sheppard remarked. "He has an ice pack on it."

"That works?" Evan questioned inclining his head with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Not to get rid of a hickey," John laughed lifting up the flap of the tent. "At best it might reduce any swelling or at the least make him feel really stupid."

"Oh, I get it ... the ole good cop, bad cop routine," Evan commented with a nervous chuckle. "Nice scare tactic." Evan nodded unconsciously. "Is that what you're doing with Divya too?"

"What makes you think that?" John replied.

"Because she's scared shitless in there thinking that she is in really big trouble over losing her weapon," Evan said crisply. "I tried to tell her it wasn't that big of deal because … well, I mean, yeah, it's a big deal that her gun is gone, but Rivers told me during my weapons training that it happens all the time."

John looked back at Rivers who just shrugged his shoulders. Evan whipped his head back and forth between the two …er three senior leaders. Ronon and Rivers were looking anywhere but at Evan and Sheppard had an unreadable expression on his face. Evan never got an answer to his question because Sheppard stepped away from him and into the tent.

John ducked his head under the flap and stepped into the tent. He found Divya sitting quietly at a small table looking like she lost her best friend. He already heard the sit rep from Becker that the missing tac vest and weapon were hers. It didn't make much sense to him and based on the look on her face, she had no answers for him either.

"Don't beat yourself up Div," he said walking around the side of the table. "You're not the first one to lose a weapon." He put his hand on her shoulder and slid his fingers across the back of her neck.

"It's not the weapon, I misplaced medication," Divya whined as tears filled up in her eyes. "What if a child eats it? It could kill him. And now some unknown person has my weapon and vest?" Tears spilled down her cheeks and she could do nothing to stop them.

John unclipped his P-90 from his vest and set it on the table. He straddled the bench and scooted up next to her, pulling her into his embrace. He didn't have any words for her at that minute, instead he just held her close to comfort her. He looked around the room, to the floor of the tent where her medical bags were sitting on the floor.

"Why do I get the impression this isn't about your weapon?' he said quietly in her ear.

She pulled back and looked deep into his crystal green eyes. The tears still streamed down her face. "You think you know me that well?" she sniffled.

"Yup," Sheppard replied. He reached up and caught a tear with his thumb. "Why do you think I felt the need to come all the way out here?"

"Because I lost my weapon," she replied.

"Nothing that Lieutenant Becker couldn't have handled," he said frankly. "But you've been moody the past few days and I decided that you needed to face it head on because it's eating you alive." He brushed his hand over her cheek. "So?"

Divya glanced away from his eyes and searched for an answer in the beige canvas walls of the tent. She looked back into his eyes and watched as he waited for her to say something. "I've been thinking about what's going to happen at the end of next month," she said quietly. "When it's time for Hank to return to the Hamptons."

She sighed heavily and felt the tears spill over her lids again. "I don't want to go," she whispered barely audible.

"Div, it's six weeks away. A lot can happen in six weeks," he said trying to comfort her.

"No, John, you don't understand," she insisted. She cupped her hand to his face and traced his bottom lip with her thumb. "I don't want to leave. I want to stay here and do my work and …. be with you," she said trying desperately to turn her frown into a smile.

John blinked in shock. He watched her lips move and heard the words with his ears, but processing them took another set of senses that were stunned. For seven months she kept reminding him how she was leaving to spend the summer with the upper echelon working for HankMed and suddenly she ….whoa!

"You want to stay in Atlantis," John repeated slowly to make sure he heard her right.

"Yes. But there's a new team coming for the summer. Dr. Hampton is going back to Earth and Dr. Phillips is going to be acting CMO until Hank returns in the fall, if he returns," she rambled not making any sense. "We were a packaged deal, Hank and I. But with Hank having custody of Tucker now … everything is changed and I'm not sure how I woub."

John reached out and cut her off by placing his finger on her lips. "Divya, do you want to stay in Atlantis all summer? Yes or No?" he asked directly. He moved his finger so she could answer.

"Yes, but John...it's not that eaz…."

Sheppard moved his finger back, cutting her off again. "It is that easy," he reminded her. "Woolsey and I have already had a conversation about the three of you. He was actually going to try to talk Hank into staying until this Tucker thing came up. If you want to stay … we can make it happen."

"Seriously?" she questioned him.

He looked deep into her chocolate brown eyes. John loved how they sucked him in and made him mush at her fingertips. John could feel his heart beating in his throat and the back of his neck became really really hot.

"Officially speaking," John croaked. He reached for her hand and wrapped his fingers around it. "Yes. I can arrange it so you can stay for the summer." He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the knuckles of her fingers. "Of course, I think there is going to be a room shortage this summer, so you _might _have to hot bunk it with one of the marines."

He watched a smile creep across her face. _She wants to stay, _he thought as their lips crashed together. _She wants to stay … with me. _

TBC


	26. Chapter 26

MSG – 26

Their lips crashed together in a very public display of affection. He felt her hand slide across the fabric of his shirt. His body responded to her favorably. But this venue wasn't the time or the place. He pulled back from her lips and glanced around the room.

"Oh crap," he moaned glancing back to his partners eyes.

"What?"

"My ex is standing about ten feet behind you," he said quietly.

"Hank!" the barista yelled out to inform him the coffee was ready.

Hank begrudgingly stepped from Anne's side to grab their cups and noticed Jill walking his way as he did. "Jill," he greeted her as she got closer.

"Oh Hank, fancy meeting you here," she said sarcastically. "Where's Stone?"

"He's ah …," Hank stammered trying to think of a fast excuse.

"At the office," Teldy finished the sentence for him. "Lot's of paperwork to do these days."

"Right," Jill said slowly eyeing Teldy up one side and down the other. "I'm Jill Casey, a frenemy of Hank's."

"Hi, Anne Teldy," Teldy replied reaching out to shake Jill's hand. "I'm Hank's girlfriend."

"Oh," Jill blurted out, visibly stunned and confused all at the same time. "Girlfriend?" she chuckled nervously. "How long?" she questioned waving her finger between Teldy and Hank.

"A couple of months," Hank said finding his voice.

"Ah," Jill grunted still in shock from the news. "And Tucker? How's he doing?" she asked trying to recover.

"He's settling in well," Anne said casually.

"Settling in where?" Jill guffawed.

"Ah, the condo in the city," Hank said. He looked at his watch and coughed. "Anne, we need to go," he said quickly adverting any further conversation or questions from Jill.

"Oh, right," Anne said picking up on his cover. "Nice to meet you," she said patting Jill's arm and letting Hank shuffle her out the door. They were in the saab and several blocks down the street before another word was said.

"Rivers said she was hot," Anne said as the green Saab sped around the corner.

"She's ah … cute," Hank said rolling his head a bit. He could feel the hot glare from across the seat. "You're not jealous are you?" he asked without looking at her. He didn't need to see her face to know the answer was yes.

"Why would I be jealous?" Teldy said loudly. "It's not like you were going to be spending the whole summer here starting next month."

"Ah, right," Hank said nodding his head slowly. _Yup, she's jealous. _"Stone told you that she dumped me right?" he asked employing some damage control.

"Yeah," Teldy growled from her side of the car.

Hank glanced to look at her and watched as she twirled her brown hair in around her finger. _She's hot, _Hank thought glancing back at the road. _Way hotter than Jill ever was! Even when she's mad. _He pulled the car to the curb. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she said biting her lip. She was quiet for all of two seconds before she laid into him. "How many times do you run into her when you come home?"

"Probably every time. It's a small town. She works at the hospital. I'm a doctor," Hank explained.

"She's better than hot," Teldy pouted.

"And she lied to me about being married and then dumped me for her husband." Hank reached out for her hand. "You're beautiful and work with a crop of horn dogs everyday."

"They thought I was gay before I started seeing you," she laughed.

"Wow! Were they wrong," Hank chuckled. He leaned over for a quick kiss. "So what's bothering you?"

"In a month you'll be leaving the city for the summer," she said quietly.

"Yeah, just for the summer," Hank agreed. "Then I'm right back in the fall."

Teldy tilted her head and pursed her lips. "Do you honestly think that?"

"That I'll be back in the fall?" Hank said. "Yeah, I'll be back in the fall. I already worked it out with General O'Neil."

"What about Tucker?"

"What about him? He's thriving in Atlantis. For once that kid's life isn't all caught up in the techno age and fortified with dollar signs," Hank replied. "He likes it there."

"What about his life here?" Teldy asked.

"Well, that's one of the reasons I need to be here this summer," he said. "There are some legal things the attorney and I need to work out."

"And then you'll be back?"

Hank watched her expression and saw the uncertainty in her face. "You know, you could come here with me this summer and help out," he offered.

"Help you do what?"

"Run the practice," he said shrugging his shoulders.

"I thought Evan and Divya were doing that," Anne replied.

"I don't think Divya is going to be coming back this summer," Hank said with a faint smile. "I think there is someone in Atlantis that has snagged her and Evan doesn't need to be in the Hamptons to run the business. He's been keeping up on things fine from a distance."

"What would I do in the Hamptons?" Teldy asked him.

"You could lie on the beach and shoot paint balls at Jill's front door," Hank offered.

Teldy shook her head and burst out in laughter. "I don't think the Air Force is going to go for that," she said between giggles.

"Maybe you could be my body guard … instead of Stone," he conceded.

"Then Stone couldn't flirt with Jill," Teldy practically sneered.

"Well, there is that," Hank agreed. "Maybe you could com…" His next word was cut off by Teldy's lips locking with his.

"I'll come alright, Hank Lawson," she whispered with a sly smile. "Just put this car in gear and I'll show you."

"Yeow!" Hank muttered under his breath as he sat back in the driver's seat. "I love it when my woman takes charge."

…**~…**

Hank closed his eyes and threw his arm over his eyes. _That wasn't how I had planned to spend the afternoon, _he sighed quietly, _but it was really really nice. _Teldy's warm body was curled around his, her breath was light against his skin. _Jealously sex is really great, _he noted as he replayed the event in his mind.

Sex with Anne could be described a variety of ways, but a couple of words always remained constant. Hot and exciting. What was different about it was the emotional connection. In the beginning they pursued each other and flirted to end the loneliness of their isolation. Maybe it was a little rebound medicine for both of them. Hank thought he was so careful to keep it casual. _Short term, _he reminded himself. Except that somewhere along the way their relationship changed and now the thought of being apart from her for the summer … even it was only three months scared the hell out of him.

_When did I fall in love with her? _ The questioned suddenly burned on the back of his throat. These feelings that were knotted up inside of him about Anne were different than anything he had felt before. The relationship grew out of a friendship that wasn't laced with money or status. Anne didn't want to be with him because he was a doctor or lived in a mansion in the Hampton's. She wasn't Nikki and she wasn't Jill, but one thing was for sure … she was exactly the woman he needed her to be.

_I bet she wouldn't have dumped me when I got fired, _he thought as he rolled into her warmth. He shuddered slightly remembering the guy he had been a year ago. _A lot can happen in a year. I went from lying around in my underwear for a month, to being the doctor of the rich to the chief medical officer on a military expedition to no-man's land. _Hank took a deep breath, sucking Anne's scent deep into his lungs. _And for once, I'm hap –…_ he thought trailed off when his cell phone rattled him back into reality. He grabbed it off the nightstand and thumbed it on.

"Hank, Diane and I are waiting for you," Boris's deep voice announced over the line.

"Shhh….yeah okay," Hank coughed out. "I'll be up in about ten minutes," he mumbled scrambling out of the bed. He tossed the phone back on the nightstand and darted into his bathroom.

"Whay… who was that?" Teldy groaned trying to wake herself up.

"Boris," Hank said as he ran back to the bed and started to get dressed. "The legal team is waiting for me."

"I thought your meeting with him wasn't until three?" Anne said sitting up.

"Yeah and it's now three ten." He tossed the car keys to her and grabbed his shirt. "This probably going to take a while, so in case you want to amuse yourself."

Teldy stared at the keys and snarled her lip. "You expect me to drive your Saab?"

"Yeah, sorry, I left the jumper double parked in the city," Hank laughed as he shoved his feet in his shoes and headed for the door.

…**~…**

There was a reason Hank didn't go to law school. All the official mumbo-jumbo was worse than sitting through a staff meeting at his old hospital. He ran his hand across his brow and sank a little deeper into the couch. He needed to listen to Diane's speech because among other things it concerned Tucker and his custody for the next fourteen months. What Marshall Bryant spelled out so simply in his will, was now caught up in the legal red-tape of a family's estate and some distant relatives that suddenly wanted to stake a claim.

One of the main hang-ups of the family was where Hank was _keeping _Tucker at the present moment and why he was refusing the family to have any contact with the minor child. Diane knew the circumstances of Hank's military contract to an extent and was doing her best to run interference for him. But the family's pressure was getting hot and it was becoming clear to Hank that a summer in the Hampton's was going to be a requirement.

Hank chuckled aloud as Diane read a statement from the family inquiring if Hank was expecting compensation for Tucker's care. He leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "They don't know me very well do they?" he said rubbing his palms together.

"That's the problem Dr. Lawson, they don't know you at all," Diane replied. "Don't take it personally. The young Bryant family is used to dealing with problems by buying them off."

"In the same manner that Marshall Bryant lived," Hank surmised.

"Correct," Diane remarked. "They don't know how to deal with someone like you."

"Someone like me," Hank repeated not understanding what she meant.

"A good decent person," Diane said curtly.

"Ah," Hank grunted nodding his head. "Let me get this straight. No one gave a crap about this kid for the past three years when his father was getting high and leaving him with the maid all summer. Now that a stranger has been appointed his guardian and is finally putting some structure in his life, they're getting their panties in a bunch.

"More or less," Diane said with a slight smile.

"Maybe we need to start using a new play book," Hank said leaning back against the cushions.

Diane nodded and reached for her water glass. "Mr. Lawson, I like the way you think."

TBC


	27. Chapter 27

MSG -27

**Month Nine**

Evan rolled over onto his back. His tongue trailed across his bottom lip and tasted the coppery wetness seeping from it. The blood was the only moisture his mouth had felt in a day. His throat and tongue felt like they had been stuffed with dusty cotton balls. Evan was so parched that it surprised him that he could even bleed.

He rubbed his arm across his chest and fingered the swollen bumps that decorated his torso. He didn't need to look down to know his ribs were broken. _I don't need to be a doctor, _he half told himself, _to know that I'm completely fucked. _ He opened his eyes and slowly scanned the cell that contained him.

The room wasn't very big and like the other cell he had been in, it didn't have any furniture. The floor was warm at least which was a good thing because the rest of the room was freezing. He had nothing but his tattered clothing to cover himself and his will to keep up the fight. _Because in three weeks I'm going to be in the Hamptons basking in the sun in Boris's backyard. Driving my hot red sports car. _ Evan closed his eyes and thought back to how he ended up trapped in this musty cell.

_He walked out of the gear room and headed up the stairs to the gate. Another mission with Divya and crew. Another set of villagers that needed medical attention. Another day with Tucker in a primitive environment that stifled his need for electronics and nurtured his brain. Ha! What a crock! Evan chuckled to himself. He knew there was only one reason Tucker was excited to go off-world and it was spelled S-H-A-N-E-E. _

_Evan scanned the group gathering at the bottom of the stairs and furrowed his brow at one person in particular. What the hell is he doing here? Evan thought as he made his way toward the person. He doesn't go off world with me … shit he'll probably jinx us. _

"Huh, he jinxed us alright," Evan said aloud to the empty room. "I wonder what my dear ole brother is now?"

…**~…**

Hank rolled his head forward on his shoulders. There wasn't a bone or muscle in his body that didn't ache. His ribs hurt from the beating he had gotten a few hours ago. He was sure that his jaw was broken and unfortunately remembered exactly when it happened. _That's what I get for trying to be the hero, _he mused as he tried to flex his hand. _Ugh, that's broke too, _he grimaced.

Why he thought he needed to leave the comfort of the infirmary for this seemingly routine mission escaped him. His reasons that it was the last one he would go on and spending quality time with Tucker in the outback all came off as lame in retrospect. Tucker didn't want him hanging around while he tried to put the moves on his girl. Divya and her team could handle the locals on their own. What should have been so cut and dried quickly unraveled into chaos and left those trained to protect dead and those trained to treat captured.

"At least I think we're all captured," he mumbled aloud wondering where Evan, Divya and Tucker ended up. Hank barely had a handle on how he ended up in this cell. An ambush, a battle and then a quick surrender. He knew for a fact he was shot with a wraith stunner. Then at some point he woke up in a room with a bunch of goons kicking the crap out of him. _And Evan. _ And that's when the attackers informed Hank Lawson he needed to be taught a lesson.

"This is really going to screw up my custody petition," he mumbled through clinched teeth.

…**~…**

The blackness is what bothered him the most. The sensory deprivation of not being able to see even an inch in front of his face scared the crap out of him. He could feel his limbs tremble as he drew his legs to his chest and wrapped his arms around his knees. _My eyes will adjust in a few minutes, _he said quietly in his head. He strained his ears to listen for any little sound, but the corridor outside of the cell was dead silent.

_Is it dead silent because I'm the only one alive? _ Tucker Bryant wondered. He had watched the intruders attack the villagers and every member of the off-world team. There was no question that some had been killed immediately. Tucker had seen Corporal Casey take a fatal blow and watched helplessly as Lieutenant Becker suffered a similar fate. In the end, Tucker and those that remained standing just surrendered. _And then I was shot and woke up here, _he thought.

_I think that was yesterday, _he mulled over in his head. _Which means that in three days when I'm supposed to return to earth, I won't be able too….which is really going to arch off granny's attorney. _He almost laughed at how ludicrous it sounded.

"I wonder how the air force will classify my death if I don't make it out of this," Tucker whispered into the darkness. He shuddered at the thought and ran his palms down his legs. "Or any of our deaths?"

Tucker made a mental list of those he knew were alive at the end of the ambush. _Hank, Evan, Sergeant Everly, Corporal Feldman, Jannie the med tech all from our group. Dr. Royce, Dr. Wolfe and their assistants Aubrey, Donald and Ike. _ He tilted his head in thought. "So what happened to Shanee and Divya?"

…~…

The thick covering of overgrowth shielded her eyes from the hot sun, but it did little to cool her fever. She could feel a warm hand brush the side of her face and a rough cloth pad gently across her brow. Any attempt to open her eyes or focus on the view was fruitless. Every inch of her body hurt. Her head pounded from a searing headache that just wouldn't go away. The side of her abdomen burned from the hole in her flesh that was put there by a gun. _The one that was stolen from me no doubt, _Divya noted. She tried to form words to talk to the person sitting next to her, but her tongue and lips wouldn't cooperate.

_I think it's Shanee, _Divya concluded after taking a little nap. As she pieced it all back together, it was the only conclusion that made sense. The two of them were in the tent with a couple of villagers when the attack started. One of the _patients _cracked her across the head. Divya remembered Shanee grabbing her arm and forcing her to run, except that Divya could barely stand or see straight. Instead Shanee ended up dragging Divya away from the melee, which is when her side lit up like a torch.

The rest of what happened or how long they had been hiding in the underbrush was lost to Divya. The woman who she believed to be Shanee would occasionally whisper calming words in her ear, but their meaning was mixed in a sea of rambling thoughts. Most centered on what had happened to her and the rest of the team. A few danced around who had done this to them and occasionally she wondered when her rescue was going to come.

She didn't have to think about the last one long.

**TBC**


	28. Chapter 28

MSG – 28

John Sheppard paced impatiently outside of the surgical bay. He checked his watch for the twentieth time. He resisted the urge to tap his radio and ask for a status report from his teams. He watched helplessly as three nurses came out of the room and ran to get more blood or another bag of IV fluids or just make a bathroom break.

She was weak, very weak when they found her. Shanee had managed to keep the ailing Divya out of sight while one of the villagers sent out a mayday from the gate. Most of the off-world team was missing in action and a few were KIA. John had been down this street before, all with women he loved. Elizabeth, then Teyla and now Divya.

_They survived, she will too, _he kept telling himself. It gave him some comfort that Phillips was the one welding the knife, but maybe if Hank was there John wouldn't have a knot in his stomach. _Or maybe I have a knot in my stomach because no one knows where Hank is … or Evan or Tucker or the other unaccounted for team members. _

He ran his hand across his brow and rested his hands at his hips. _Maybe I feel so crappy because I never really tell her how I feel, _he thought kicking the wall with the toe of his shoe. _I mumble it when we're intimate, but I don't tell her aloud, when it would really mean something. _John looked down the corridor that emptied into the main infirmary. _I can't even believe I'm thinking like that … but I don't want Div to be another one that got away. I feel different about her. She's going to make it John and then I'll tell her once and for all. _"And then I'll kick someone's ass for doing this to her…to them," he mumbled under his breath. 

He sighed heavily as he turned on his heel and headed the opposite way. What little information they had on the attack was conflicted. Some said it was the wraith, some said it was humans from another planet. After all they had done to rid this galaxy of the wraith in the past six years, it sickened Sheppard to the core to think that there might still be wraith worshipers out there. _Doing what, _he wondered to himself. He'd know soon enough as Lorne and Rivers were still out gathering intel.

"Colonel Sheppard," Dr. Phillips voice rang out in the hallway.

John spun around and stood firm as the air force lieutenant headed his way. "Lieutenant," John greeted Phillips formally. It seemed odd to call the man by his rank, but it was the only word that made it to his mouth.

"She's stable," the man said without preamble. He handed Sheppard a small glass container with two slugs in it. "Nine millimeter bullets. One was close range, maybe five or six feet, the other from farther away. They did some damaging. Shanee saved her life. She's going to be sore for a while."

John eyed the container and felt the blood drain from his face. "When can I see her?" he asked absent-mindedly.

"A few hours," Phillips commented. "Maybe less," he added when he noticed the hollow look on the colonel's face. "You think she was caught in the cross fire by mistake?"

"That's a good question," John replied just as Amelia called him to the gate room. "I'll be right there," he said into the radio. "I'll let you know doc."

…**~…**

Sheppard took the stairs heading to control by threes and was barely out of breath when he hit the landing. He breezed down the walkway to Woolsey's office and noticed Major Teldy standing in front of the leader's desk.

"What's going on?" John asked as he cleared the doorway.

"Nothing you're going to like Colonel," Teldy replied.

"Major, I haven't liked anything that has happened today, so any information is better than nothing," Sheppard remarked impatiently. He watched Teldy pull a nine millimeter gun out of her TAC vest and hold it out by hooking her finger through the key grip.

"Well, maybe you'll like this then," Teldy said. "Divya's gun."

John stared at it wordless and trailed his eyes from Woolsey to the Major. "What about it? I took it out of her holster myself." He rested his hands on his hips.

"It's not the weapon that she carried on this mission," Teldy informed him as Woolsey handed her a plastic bag. "It's the one that was stolen from her last month." Teldy dropped the gun in the evidence bag and sealed it shut.

Sheppard took it out of her hand and turned it over. He pulled the container Phillips had given him out of his pocket. "Phillips pulled these out of Divya," he said tossing it on Woolsey's desk.

"How is Ms. Katdare?" Woolsey asked as he picked up the container and studied the slugs.

"Phillips just finished the surgery," John said crisply trying desperately to hold back his emotion. "She's stable."

Woolsey nodded and set the bullets back down on the desk. "Are these nine millimeter bullets?" he asked.

"Yes," Sheppard said flatly. "And I bet this is the weapon they came from." He handed the gun back to Teldy. "Anne, have the armory run a ballistics check on the gun."

"Right away sir," Teldy replied. She hesitated slightly before leaving the room and Sheppard hooked her arm to stop her.

"We're going to find him Major," he informed Anne.

"I know," Teldy replied slowly.

John could see the hurt in her eyes. It was the same thing he had felt a few minutes ago. _Except that Divya is here recovering and Hank is nowhere to be found, _he reminded himself. "Don't give up hope Anne," he said locking eyes with her. "The fact they were taken is one thing in our favor."

"Otherwise I'd be looking at a body bag," she whispered barely audible. "I know."

John watched her pull out of his grasp and quickly leave the room. He glanced back to Woolsey who was sitting calmly at the desk. "Any thoughts?" John prompted the expedition leader.

"I have a lot of questions," Woolsey remarked. "And not a lot of concrete answers."

"Yeah, don't we all," Sheppard sighed. "Hopefully McKay has some answers for us."

…**~…**

Rodney McKay rolled his head on his neck and reached for his cup of coffee. He had been working on the damaged laptop since they returned from the rescue mission. Woolsey had made digital records SOP after Divya's weapon was stolen a month ago and it was a good idea. _And if someone hadn't shot the hard drive of this piece of crap I could do something more with it! _Rodney growled in his head.

"Please tell me you have good news," John Sheppard voice echoed through the lab.

McKay turned in his stool and watched as Sheppard and Woolsey marched into the room. "How's Divya?" Rodney asked.

"She's just out of surgery," John replied. "She's stable. It looks like she was shot with her own gun."

McKay guffawed wordlessly. "What'd'ya mean her own gun? Her gun was in the holster … what, did some freak shoot her and then put it back?"

"Not that gun," Woolsey informed him dryly. "The one that was stolen last month."

"Oh, um … that makes sense, sort of," Rodney mumbled turning back to the damaged laptop.

"It does?" Woolsey questioned.

"Yeah, well, sort of. I was able to pull some data from the laptop. Not much," Rodney rambled pounding the keys on the lab computer. He brought up some video and pushed the play button. "Everything seems to be a normal day at the doctor's office until here," Rodney narrated pointing at the screen. "Then there's some commotion in the background. Then Divya is shoved to the ground here. There's a nine mil in the frame here," Rodney pointed at the screen, "But Div's is clearly in her holster." Rodney watched the playback for a few seconds and then the screen filled with static and went black. "That's all I've been able to retrieve so far. The laptop is pretty much toast."

"So there's nothing to back up the villagers claim that it was the wraith," John asked.

"Only if the wraith have truly turned into humans and have resorted to using mechanical weapons," Rodney remarked. "So far it's only human's on the playback … unless there is something else locked up inside of here?" He waved at the broken laptop.

"Maybe it's time that we contacted our ole friend again," Woolsey suggested.

"To do what?" Rodney protested loudly.

"To give us some insight on what's going on with the other wraith in this sector," Sheppard said curtly. "Keep working on that computer," he said to McKay.

TBC


	29. Chapter 29

MSG – 29

Before he could even protest, rough hands grabbed at his shirt and hauled him to his feet. He stumbled out of the cell and down the corridor. Strong arms were pushing him as he walked. Bright lights were blinding him. The narrow walkway nearly suffocated him. And just when he thought it was all a dream, he was shoved through a doorway of a large white room and wrestled flat onto a cold metal table.

He watched as two men and two women strapped him down and cut his clothes from his body. The air was icy and he started to tremble, but the attendants did nothing to cover him. He felt humiliated at the treatment he was getting and pulled against his restraints. He watched a pretty blonde female walk to the side of the table and brush against his leg. His humiliation morphed quickly into embarrassment when his dick grew hard. He closed his eyes and turned his face from her as it bounced against his stomach and stood straight up at attention.

_Oh geezus, _Tucker Bryant moaned in his head. _This wasn't covered in survival class. _ He tried to pull at his bindings again desperate to get a hand free and cover himself. The young girl mumbled something to someone else in the room. Tucker turned his head slightly to see what she was doing. He watched as one of the men approached the table and pushed some control to lower it.

"Here's the medication," the female said

"This is the one with the bleeding disease," the man informed her. "Give me the clamp."

Tucker felt his heart kick up a notch as the two walked around to the head of the bed. He looked up at the man and saw a blank stare looking back at him. He noticed the syringe in the man's hand and caught a streak of silver out of the corner of his eye.

"Just relax and this won't hurt a bit," the man informed him.

…**~…**

The agonizing screams echoed down the corridor and rattled the fibers of Hank Lawson's soul. The sound came in waves. Several minutes of silence followed by gut wrenching screams and then more silence. As time went on, the intonation changed from a frantic terrified scream to a distressed moan type scream. It wasn't just one voice, it was at least six different ones. Some seemed familiar to him and he wondered if he could put a face to the vocalizations. Not that it made it any better.

It was a sound that no doctor really wanted to hear. People screamed in pain when they were in the emergency room. They screamed when doctors performed some procedures, but those screams were short lived and easily dosed with mind numbing medications. These sounds that reverberated throughout the cell had been going on for hours and he was powerless to do anything about it.

…**~…**

The door swung open and light poured into his cell. Evan turned his head and put his hand up to shield his eyes. He noticed two goons standing at the doorway.

"Get up Evan," a gruff voice ordered.

Evan recognized it immediately and it wasn't some sick nightmare playing out in his head. It was a hard cold reality starring the silent one and the talker from his _other _hostage experience. Evan barely moved from the spot he had lying on the floor and just grunted at their request.

"Huh?"

"Get up," the man repeated loudly.

Evan rolled slowly to his side and forced his arms under his body. The _silent one_ entered the cell as he attempted to get up and Evan eyed him carefully. Evan was nearly standing when his legs gave out and he collapsed on the floor. Oddly enough _silent one _caught him before he had a head-on collision with the deck plating.

"Agh, thanks," Evan muttered as he sunk back to his knees. The _silent one _grabbed Evan by the shoulder and yanked him upward, securing his arm around Evan's waist. Again the whole thing seemed a little suspicious considering these guys were holding him hostage again.

"Where ree you taking me?" Evan whispered through gritted teeth.

"To the lab," the talker replied. "We need a sample."

"A sample of what?" Evan asked just as he started to cough uncontrollably. He put his hand up on the door frame and opened his mouth as a wad of blood and mucous leaked out of his lips. "Ugh," he moaned. "Didn't I leave you enough bodily fluids during my last visit?"

"We need semen," the talker said flatly as he started to walk down the hall.

Evan sucked in some air as the _silent one _forced him to walk. He wanted to have a comeback for them, but his mouth suddenly wouldn't work. Every step caused pain to slice through his body. The _silent one _moved too quickly for his liking, but he was powerless to do anything about it. He tried to block out the pain by thinking about what the talker had said. _They need semen. What the frak do they need that for? To finish whatever they tried to start months ago? So much for just leaving us alone with that bogus sweep of the city, _Evan thought just as the _silent one _turned the corner and walked Evan into a large medical room.

"Put him on the table," a male voice said from the side of the room.

The talker and the silent one steered Evan toward a metal table just as the third male stepped out of the darkness and came at him with a really big syringe.

"Ah, wait!" Evan protested finally finding some strength in his limbs.

"This will go easier for you if you don't resist," the third male said.

"While you do what?" Evan squawked. "Shove that needle into my nads?"

"It is a simple procedure."

"So is jerking off into a cup … and it's a lot less painful," Evan argued.

"And that's just another excuse for you to stall," the talker said.

The three wrangled Evan onto the table and into the restraints. Evan tried to fight back, but it was three against one, he was injured and not really in a position to resist. He could feel the men pull his pants down to his knees, exposing his privates. He could hear the clicks and pops of the medical gizmos on the table next to him and then felt one of the men grab his nuts firmly. He barely had time to think before he could feel the needle plunging into his sack.

…**~…**

The door to his cell clanged open and a huge shadow appeared in the doorway. The light from the corridor was bright, but Hank wasn't affected much since he was sitting in the corner. The shadow peered into the room defensively, a while a fleeting thought of resistance flashed in his head, Hank had no intentions of moving an inch.

"You're needed in the medical lab," the low voice growled.

"For what?" Hank asked. His voice was rough and cutting.

"I don't know," the voice replied. "I was just told to take you there."

**TBC**


	30. Chapter 30

MSG - 30

Rodney shuddered as he adjusted his P-90. He scanned the horizon with a furrowed brow. He exhaled hard out of mouth and slowly started down the hatch of the jumper. He had barely taken a step when Ronon bumped into him.

"Walk a little slower McKay," Ronon grumbled.

"What's the rush?" McKay snarked as the large man shuffled him to the side.

"Oh, I don't know … maybe that eleven members of our team are missing?" Ronon retorted.

"Besides the obvious, I still don't understand why we need to involve Todd," Rodney moaned as he followed behind Sheppard and Ronon.

"Because I say we do," John remarked loudly. "And that's all the reason we need."

"Fine," McKay mumbled biting his lip to stop any further comment from leaving his mouth.

The hike to Todd's compound took less time than McKay had expected. The route through the wooded terrain had become familiar to them. _Which is weird, _McKay noted as they walked out into the open. The gatekeepers barely even flinched as Sheppard and Ronon walked among them, making their way to the ship. The corridors were dark and as dank as ever. Their guide stopped just outside of Todd's room.

"Welcome," the elder wraith greeted them.

Rodney stepped inside and noticed a bowl of fruit on the table. _Oh please, _McKay rolled his eyes. _What's next? Coffee and donuts? _

…**~…**

"They're wraith?" John Sheppard said for the tenth time.

Todd stared wordlessly at the Colonel. The stunned expression on the military leader's face surprised him. "Colonel you say that as if you never considered it," Todd commented.

"They're human …. or they looked human!" Sheppard yelped. "Why would I consider it?"

"Because Dr. Beckett created the retro-virus that turned the tide in this galaxy," Todd answered.

"The retro-virus never worked!" McKay protested.

"It is true the original virus did not work," Todd said evenly. "However once Jennifer figured out a way to rid us of the need to feed, our species needed to have a way to evolve."

"That's Dr. Keller to you buddy!" Rodney growled.

Todd shot McKay a menacing glare before continuing on. "We collected the data from Michael's computers and manipulated the original virus to its current version."

"Who is we?" Rodney questioned.

"A few factions," Todd replied with an air of vagueness.

"So the current version of this retro-virus combined with Dr. Keller's anti-feeding mutation turns black blooded wraith into humans," Sheppard half commented, half questioned.

"In a matter of speaking," Todd replied with a sadistic smile.

"Why would they take hostages?" Ronon asked. "Twice."

"There is one small flaw with the current breed," Todd remarked getting up from the table he had been sitting behind.

"Which is what?" Ronon grunted.

"The males are unable to procreate," Todd said casually.

"They're what?" McKay guffawed as his jaw dropped to the floor.

"They're not … you gotta be kidding me," Sheppard stammered as he tried to understand the implication.

…**~…**

"The aliens are wraith?" Woolsey questioned after listening to Sheppard, McKay and Ronon's report.

"Yes," Sheppard replied.

"And you think they took members of the team to procreate?" Woolsey added.

"That's what Todd thinks," Ronon grumbled.

"Nine of the eleven team members are male," Woolsey said as he reviewed the list of the missing team members.

"Very observant," McKay noted. Woolsey's slow take on the situation was irritating. Rodney could see it on Sheppard's and Ronon's faces, but neither man was stating the obvious. "Look, without being melodramatic, we need to get moving on this before there are a hundred Evan Lawson's roaming the galaxy. Just the thought of it makes me sick."

""Is that even possible?" Ronon asked looking over at Sheppard.

"Which part?" John signed heavily. "That Lawson could have that many sperm or the wraith would want several versions of him?"

"Perhaps Dr. Phillips should be brought into the situation," Mr. Woolsey interrupted trying to contain the conversation.

"Sheppard to Lieutenant Phillips," John said tapping his ear piece. "Are you available to join me in Mr. Woolsey's office?" Sheppard nodded to an unheard response. "He's on his way," John informed the room.

"Since when do you call him Lieutenant?" McKay asked with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Since I want him to understand this is a military operation," John said pacing around the room.

"If these humans are truly wraith, why didn't Teyla sense that when they were here before?" Woolsey wondered aloud while they waited.

"Teyla was off world when they were here doing their bogus sweep," John said quickly. "Ugh, I can't believe I actually agreed to that," he moaned under his breath. He ran his hand over his brow in frustration.

"There is no way you would have known they weren't who they appeared to be," Woolsey tried to assure him.

"I should hav…," Sheppard started to say just a Phillips walked in the rear door of Woolsey's office.

Sheppard brought him up to speed in short order. McKay handed the air force doctor a tablet of information that Todd had provided regarding the limitations of breed and all of Becket's previous research. Woolsey had Amelia dial Earth and request Dr. Becket's services A.S.A.P. Sheppard summonsed Lorne and Teldy to control and put jumpers in the air searching for the rogue wraith ship. Rivers rounded up two tac teams to accompany Sheppard, Ronon and McKay to the planet.

But not before Sheppard made a small detour.

…**~…**

She looked peaceful in her hospital bed. Damaged and small, but safe. John walked to her side and ran his hand down the side of her face. He watched as her eyelids fluttered open and her glassed over eyes began to focus.

"Hey," he whispered not wanting to talk too loud.

"Eweavedme," she gurgled.

John chuckled and wrapped his fingers around her hand. "Actually Shanee and Dr. Phillips saved you," he said modestly. "I just flew the jumper back through the gate."

"When I thought I was going to die under that tree, I wondered who was going to rescue me," Divya said firmly once her mouth started to work again. "And then you were there."

"Div, you were barely conscious when we found you," John tried to argue.

"I could smell that damn aftershave of yours," Divya informed him.

"Oh, yeah, there is that," he mumbled sheepishly. "Lieutenant Phillips said you're a trooper," he said to change the subject.

"Lieutenant?"

"Why is everyone suddenly questioning me about that?"

"I've been on the base nine months and I never heard you call him that before," Divya replied.

"I've called him that plenty of times," Sheppard countered. "There are times when it's more appropriate to address him by his rank and other times when it is not."

"Like when he's trying to save my life?" Divya commented.

"Or when I need him to do something really important, other than saving you life," John remarked. "Like find out why the wraith are hell bent on stealing our DNA."

"That's who attacked us?"

"And stole your weapon last month," John said nodding his head. "We just sent teams out to find our missing people. In fact, I should be going. I just wanted to see you before I left."

"Find them John," she whispered pulling his hand to her lips. "All of them. Even Evan, annoying as he is, bring they all back."

"I always bring them back Div," he whispered as the warmth of lips touched his hands. "We don't abandon our people."

TBC


	31. Chapter 31

MSG – 31

At least they covered him with a sheet, which he assumed was to make it all better, but it did nothing to take away the fire searing through his veins. _How much torture can one person survive? _Tucker wondered as he rolled his head on the table and looked at the tubing that was shoved up in his arms. He trailed his eyes along the tubing from the table to the machine and then back.

_I wonder what they are putting into me? _he questioned silently as a tear slid out of the corner of his eye. Every muscle in his body was on edge. His fingers gripped the sides of the table because it was the only solid thing that gave him any comfort. Besides the liquid propane that was igniting his blood, his privates felt all bruised and abused.

_From whatever they did to me when they knocked me out, _Tucker thought as he rested his head against the metal and closed his eyes. _How could I fight that? Is this what Major Teldy meant in survival class when she said we couldn't dwell on the things we couldn't control? I'm sixteen going on fifty. Hank won't have to petition for guardianship anymore, because I'll be dead on this table before anyone finds me. _

…_**~…**_

"So what exactly do you need my gizz for?" Evan asked the man he had nicknamed the _silent one._ Evan had been released from the medical room and was heading back to his cell. He had caught of glimpse of another Atlantis crewman being led into the room in his place and had heard the agonizing screams coming from similar rooms down the hall. _I know what they are doing to them, _he thought running his hand across his groin and winced at the tender skin.

"You are the chosen one."

"Yeah, you said that the last time you invited me over for dinner," Evan remarked. "But see, last time April was here with me and she's not here now….so what does that all mean?"

The silent one stopped walking and turned to look Evan in the eye. "You and the female were our salvation."

Evan tilted his head and scrunched his lips to the side. "April and I were your salvation because why? Because we were in the chair room when you invaded our city?"

"You reacted positively to the propellant."

Evan said nothing as he trailed his eyes around the corridor. _Divya told me she felt like a dog in heat, _he thought quickly. _She reacted positively to the propellant? Why Divya and Sheppard? _ "Oh, you mean that stuff you gassed us with that made me want to hump the chair?"

"Correct."

"Well, if you'll remember correctly, that was pretty short lived and maybe it would have worked if I had been remotely attracted to April, but as it was … I wasn't and in the end it just made me violently ill," Evan remarked chuckling in his signature _dumb ass _manner.

"That is why we needed to resort to an alternative method," the silent one replied.

"Yeah, sucking my semen out with a syringe …. That's ah…. real pleasant experience," Evan replied sarcastically. "You should try it sometime."

"That would be impossible."

"Oh, right, you just take people hostage for that," Evan said nodding his head smugly.

"We take people hostage and remove their semen because our species is unable to produce it on our own." The silent one grabbed Evan's arm and started to walk, dragging Evan along with him.

"What? What are you saying?" Evan asked pulling out of his grasp. "You can't get your freak on? Howwowowe?"

"Our species didn't evolve to include procreation," the silent one explained.

"What? How is that possible? You're human. I'm human. We are all the same," Evan yelped as he tried to process what the man was saying. He looked over at the silent one with a stunned expression on his face. _First the guy doesn't talk at all, now after he squeezes the life out of my nuts, he won't shut up. _

"We are not all the same," the silent one replied simply. He walked ahead of Evan and opened the door to his cell.

"So you have to resort to stealing male sperm from other humans?" Evan muttered as he shuffled around the open door.

"Yes," the silent one replied.

"And the females?" Evan asked leaning against the door jam. "What are you gonna…how are you going to mix it up?"

"After the eggs are extracted, the two will be combined and grown in incubators."

Evan winced at the sound of that and he wanted to know more but didn't dare ask. Instead of turned to head back into the cell and the stopped and looked back at the man. "You know, my brother is a doctor," Evan said slowly. "He's still here right? I saw him yesterday … at least I think it was yesterday. Shorter version of me, brown hair. He….actually _we _might be able to help your people out with your fertility problem."

…**~…**

He could still hear the screams bouncing off the corridors. The difference was this time he knew why. He had lived it. For years he had had a vague idea of what happened to people who were tortured. He had treated patients that had suffered a mundane version of it, but he never really understood it. _Until now, _he thought.

Hank Lawson wasn't exactly sure what _they _had done to him. Instinct told him to resist once he was pushed into the medical room. He had tried, but they overpowered him. In short order they had him restrained on a table. What they did to him next…Hank really didn't want to think about. He barely wanted to admit that part of his anatomy still existed. _But if I ever get out of here, I'm headed for a dry spell for the summer. _

It had been at least three hours since he was returned to his cell. The procedure was quick and crude. He didn't need a billboard in neon lights to explain what they were doing or why. His medical training gave him that. In the hours that he lie on the floor of his cell recovering, logic told him the reason. _These people are sterile, _he noted just as the cell door opened.

_Oh shit. _

…**~…**

"Any chance I could talk a shower and freshen up before we get started?" Evan cast his line in the water and stared at the four sets of eyes staring at him. He was feeling kinda lucky at his point. _I just negotiated our release with the big dog, so what could it take to get a shower and some clean clothes? _"I feel kinda skuzzy."

"No."

Evan trailed his eyes around the room and shrugged his shoulders. "Okay just asking," he said slowly. "But you know, it order for me be able to properly help my brother, we're both going to need some medical attention …. and not the kind that requires huge needles stuck in my balls."

"You're not in a position to make demands."

"Actually I think I'm in every position," Evan replied caustically. "You're sterile and need our help and I could give it … for a price." He sat down on the nearest chair like thing and crossed his arms at his chest.

"We've already agreed to consider to let all of you go," the lead man said. "What more do you want?"

"Oh, ho ho," Evan chuckled sadistically. "Don't even get me started. Do you want me to make a list? Okay, let's start with me knowing that every one of my team is perfectly safe and is getting proper medical attention. And just so we're clear, I need to physically see them, not just your word on it. And what else?" Evan tapped his lip with his finger. "Food would be good. But not that crap that you tried to feed me last time. And showers… yeah, showers and clean clothes would be nice."

"Why did you bring this one back here?"

"He said he could help us."

"He runs his mouth too much. We should have left him on the planet."

Evan smiled smugly as the four mumbled amongst themselves. He heard shuffling at the door and looked over his shoulder just as another goon pushed Hank into the room. "Henry!" Evan exclaimed.

"Evan?" Hank gurgled through his broken jaw. "Whatzoingon?"

Evan winced as he watched his brother tried to form words. "Hi, good you're okay, relatively speaking," Evan said lumbering up to him. "I kinda made a deal with the devil to get us out of here."

"Whah?" Hank gasped wondering what kind of mess his brother got him into now.

"Well, I'm sure you've already had to endure their version of the penile massage?" Evan asked his brother pointing in the direction of their dicks. "Yeah, the reason they did that is because they have fertility issues."

"And whazoes zat hafta ewe wizuz?" Hank hissed.

"Well, I told them that maybe you and I … mostly you could help them fix it … if they agreed to release us," Evan said quietly.

"Fizit?" Hank mumbled. "Ian't fiz a ferlily problem ina aye." He eyed his brother suspiciously and glanced over his shoulder at the goons.

"Okay, did you skip a day in survival class?" Evan whispered out of the side of his mouth. "I'm trying to create a diversion and you're screwing it up."

"Ah," Hank grunted nodding his head.

"Okay! Where's that medical attention I asked for?" Evan asked the goons over Hank's head.

TBC


	32. Chapter 32

MSG – 32

"What'd'ya got doc?" John Sheppard asked Dr. Phillips as he approached the work bar.

"Ugh, not much," Phillips replied running his hand over the fuzz of his military cut. "Enough to know that I'm not going to be able to solve it before you mount a rescue mission."

"I'm not expecting miracles, Lieutenant," John said. "Just a bargaining chip."

The air force lieutenant nodded and turned the screen of his monitor so Sheppard could see. "I skimmed through Todd's research, but really went back and read through our file on Michael," he started to say just as Sheppard interrupted.

"Ugh, why does that name keep coming back to haunt us?"

"Ha," Phillips grunted. "In this case, it's probably for the best. We know the wraith males in their true form had all the correct plumbing so to speak, but other than excreting waste, they had no use for it."

"I saw Michael in his human state and he ah …. had ah," John said waiving his hand around uncomfortably.

"Right," Phillips said letting the colonel off the hook. "There are notes in his file that indicate Michael was able to have an erection. A med tech charted it three mornings in a row and Michael told Heightmeyer in two sessions that he woke up feeling sexually aroused."

"I don't even want to know what he was dreaming about that caused it," Sheppard muttered under his breath.

"It wasn't a what," Phillips remarked.

"I said I didn't want to know," Sheppard said holding his hand up. "It was Teyla wasn't it?"

"I thought you said you didn't want to know?" Phillips questioned his commanding officer.

"He had a thing for her," Sheppard said shrugging his shoulders. "Okay so can't the new breed of wraithmuns get a boner?"

"Wraithmuns?" Phillips repeated with a perplexed expression on his face.

"McKay speak," John said shaking his head. "Don't ask."

Phillips arched his brow at Sheppard and rolled his eyes. "Well, the data that Todd provided doesn't really indicate that. It's as if they never considered that possibility."

"The wraith have survived for thousands of years," Sheppard remarked with a stunned expression on his face. "And they didn't factor in procreation? Are there no female wraith … humans?"

"No," Phillips replied flatly. "Apparently the drugs used in the transformation were lethal to the females. This current batch of "hybrids" is all male and according to the research, they are sterile."

John tilted his head and walked around the work bar in thought. "Maybe Michael was sterile too," he said thinking aloud. "He _was_ hell bent on stealing Torren."

"Well, it definitely explains why they keep taking our people," Phillips remarked. "Their plan was to force Evan and April into a sexual encounter. I suspect they are attempting something similar with the current group."

"Yeah, I don't like the sounds of that," John commented. "There are two women in that group. As much as I'd like to think that everyone in the city could fight back when being tortured, I've lived their persuasive methods. It was damn hard to resist."

"Don't sell anyone short," Phillips replied. "We have some resourceful people on this mission.

…**~…**

"How's your jaw?"

Hank stopped staring at the computer screen in front of him and ran his hand across his face. His jaw hurt like hell and not because it was broken. The medical treatment their capturers had given him for his jaw and damaged hand included some of the most mind numbing pain he had ever experienced. The only good thing that had come out of it was that he could talk and flex his hand without an extreme amount of pain.

"What do you think?" Hank prompted his brother sarcastically. He didn't hold back his annoyance with his little brother. Shortly after arriving in the medical lab, Evan had disappeared with the guard leaving him alone to perform some kind of miracle with very little data.

"I think you should be thankful that you're not rotting away in your cell," Evan said sitting down on the stool next to him. "Being a hostage once in a while is good for you."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Hank questioned his younger brother.

"Come on admit it, leaving Atlantis without experiencing it at least once would have left a void on your to-do list," Evan remarked with his signature dumb smirk.

"Okay, yeah, geez … I sure wouldn't want to wish that I could have experienced that," Hank growled sarcastically. He shook his head at how stupid it sounded. "Where have you been?"

"Doing a little recon," Evan whispered. He leaned forward and played with the keyboard making it appear that the information on the screen was the most interesting data he had ever seen. "I checked on everyone that was taken to make sure they were okay."

"So now you're on the first aid committee?" Hank retorted quietly.

"Somebody had to do it and I have a rapport with these people," Evan replied flippantly. "I would think that you would appreciate that being the Chief Medical Officer and all."

"Okay, fine," Hank grunted. "How were they?"

"Ugh, considering all the guys got their nuts squeezed in a vise grip, they're alright."

"And the women?'

"Not a scratch on them," Evan replied. "But Tucker…"

"Tucker?" Hank interrupted feeling his heart kick up a notch. "What about him?"

"He's alive," Evan said quickly. "He's down the hall in a lab with a bunch of tubing hooked up to him."

"What kind of tubing?" Hank questioned trying to figure out what the goons were doing to his pseudo son.

"To be honest, it looked like they were doing something to his blood," Evan said pushing up from the desk. "The room attendant said he was sleeping."

Hank said nothing as he considered what they could be doing with Tucker's blood. Considering his hemophilia, any wrong move could cause the kid to bleed out in seconds. _Although when they were in the city, they told Phillips they had a cure for his condition, _Hank remembered. _If they were trying to kill him or any of us, they could have just taken us out on the planet, _Hank reminded himself. _No, they need us alive to harvest our sperm. _

…**~…**

"John, stop staring at me," Divya scolded her boyfriend as she tried to find a comfortable position on the narrow hospital bed. She _had _been trying to sleep for the past hour, but between the uncomfortable mattress, the dwindling affect of her pain killer and his glaring eyes she wasn't having much luck.

"I can't help it," he confessed. "You're beautiful when you're cranky."

"I could call security to kick you out of here," she said, sticking her lip out in a pout.

"I'd like to see that," he laughed. "None of them would have the balls for fear I would assign them latrine duty for the rest of their career."

"Ronon is not afraid of you," Divya said. She kicked at the sheet in frustration.

"Pain killer wearing off?" he asked leaning over to push the button for the nurse.

"How can you tell?" she practically growled.

"You have that look in your eye that could melt ice," he replied cupping her face in his hand. He rubbed his thumb over her forehead and found that spot at her temple that usually relaxed her. He heard the med tech step around the divider. "Rob, Divya needs her fix." He watched as Rob, the med tech, pulled a prepped syringe out of his pocket and stepped to the bed to inject it into the IV line.

"You're making me sound like a junkie," Divya protested.

"Well, at the moment you are, so it's a true statement," John replied watching her facial muscles relax as the medication surged through her veins. "Feel better?"

"Slightly," she answered slowly exhaling. "I'd be better if I was in my own bed."

"Your bed or my bed?"

"Either, as long as you were curled up with me," Divya replied. "And if I knew Evan, Hank and Tucker were okay." She looked up at him with sleepy eyes. "Do you have any information on who took them?"

"The same people that attacked the city a month ago," John said keeping it clean with her. The last thing she needed to get all worked up about was the status of her HankMed partners. "They'll be back in the city in time make their trip back to the Hamptons." He rubbed the side of her face. "Who knows, you might want to go home for a little R&R when this is all over."

"I doubt it," she grumbled shifting again on the bed. "I'm not going anywhere."

"You sure about that?" John asked her, knowing that whatever she said in her drug induced stupor meant nothing.

"I'm not going anywhere John Sheppard," she repeated firmly. "And I'm not just saying that because I'm doped up."

John held his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay," he chuckled, a little surprised at her resolve.

"You're not getting rid of me that easy," she informed him flatly. Before she could say another word, Ronon stuck his head through the curtain.

"Sheppard, we gotta go," Ronon said hesitating before stepping any closer.

"Ronon?" Divya questioned.

Ronon stepped to the bed and ran his hand across her hair. "We found them Div," he said leaning over to kiss her on the forehead. "Sheppard and I are going to kick some ass."

TBC


	33. Chapter 33

MSG – 33

He stretched like a cat, twisting his arms and legs taunt in their joints and relaxing back. His eyes fluttered opened and he coughed to clear the phlegm from his throat. The picture slowly came into view and for a brief second Tucker Bryant completely forgot where he was. The hard surface of the table was a quick giveaway, although the restraints on his arms were not.

_Because there aren't any, _Tucker noticed. _And there aren't any tubes attached to me, _he added pushing himself up on the table. He glanced around the room and realized he was completely alone.

"What the?" he muttered under his breath. He wrapped the thin sheet around his body and jumped to the floor. His limbs were stiff from the lack of movement and he hobbled as he walked. The floor was ice cold and stung his feet. Tucker scampered across to the door and turned the knob.

_It's unlocked. _He watched in amazement as the door opened as if he was standing in his room. Tucker peered into the hallway and made a conscious decision to make a dash for it. _I wonder which way is out? _he thought as he glanced in both directions. _Here goes nothing, _he gulped. Tucker ran down the hall with the sheet blowing in the wind and turned the corner at the end. Two steps later he came to a dead halt. The biggest meanest looking male was blocking any further escape.

"Come with me," big burly said caustically.

Tucker felt his eyes bug out of his head as the words sliced through the air. _For what? _ He didn't see a weapon on the guy and felt the urge to run the opposite direction, but just as he started to turn, another man appeared out of nowhere. _Okay, two against one kid that hasn't had anything to eat for nearly two days, _Tucker considered his options quickly.

"Fine," he said holding one hand up in surrender.

He followed the big guy through a maze of hallways until they ended up three doors down from where Tucker had started out. The big guy opened the door and rough housed Tucker through it. He was about to protest when his jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

"Evan?"

…**~…**

"Oh my god!" Evan stared at the kid with a shocked expression on his face. Tucker was three sheets whiter than the clouds. The kid had a sheen of sweat on his face and looked like he was about ready to fall over. "Can someone get him some clothes?" Evan blurted out as he ran around the table.

"Where are we?" Tucker mumbled realizing for the first time that he was freezing. He pulled the sheet a little tighter, although it hardly did any good.

"On some alien ship," Evan said not really wanting to explain that a few months ago these aliens abducted him and nearly forced him to have sex with _April. _Evan shuddered at the thought. _And she's gone now because she can't hang with the big dogs, _he noted sucking in some air to make his chest look big. "Are you okay? You look like crap."

"I feel okay," Tucker replied shrugging his shoulders. "I'm kinda hungry though."

"That might be taking your life in your own hands," Evan muttered looking over the kid with wide eyes. "Are you sure you feel okay? I saw you in that room hooked up to a bunch of machines."

"Yeah, I don't know what they were doing. It burned like hell and I thought it was going to kill me. But I woke up okay today," Tuck explained. A man came in the room and handed Tucker pants and a shirt. "Thanks," he mumbled as he tried to juggle the sheet and the clothes at once.

"Here," Evan said grabbing the sheet. He held it up while the kid turned and tried to get dressed quickly. _Holy shit, _he cursed as he caught a glimpse of the bruising across Tucker's torso, arms and legs. _Shit! Get dressed before Hank gets back, _Evan prayed silently. Knowing how territorial Hank was about Tucker's treatment back in Atlantis, nothing good could come from Hank seeing that.

"Where's Hank?" Tucker said as he tied the waist of the pants.

"Ah, I can't speak to that definitively at this moment," Evan replied. He dropped the sheet on the floor and helped Evan in to the oversized shirt. "The guards came and got him a few hours ago."

"For more tests?" Tucker questioned as a chill rattled through his bones.

"No, they looked pissed," Evan said quietly. "So I suspect something else."

…**~…**

Rodney McKay milled around in the back of the jumper. Waiting. _Hurry up, hurry up and then? Hurry up and wait, _he bitched silently. _And for what? So I can stand here getting old in the back of the jumper!_

Rodney adjusted his P-90 on his vest and paced down the aisle. The marines sitting on either side barely got out of his way. He snarled his lips in their direction and was sure he saw a look of fear in their eyes. _They ought to be scared, _Rodney through as he stood proud and completely annoyed between the compartments. _I haven't had lunch today. _

_And why did we have to hurry up and get out here again? _ he asked in his head. _Okay, maybe it was important that the off world team had been missing for thirty six hours. And maybe it was important that god knows what was happening to them. But I barely had time to work on a plan and then we charge right in here like Buck Rogers and Starbuck? _ Rodney turned on his heel and walked slowly to the back of the ship. _And if Woolsey thinks I'm just going to run in there and fix things when it all goes to hell, he's gotta another thing coming. _

He shook his head and sucked in his bottom lip. Sheppard, Teyla, Ronon, Lorne, Rivers, Phillips, and one contingent of marines had left the ship to have a "diplomatic discussion" with the Wraithmuns. _And why someone thought I needed to stay in the ship is beyond my imagination! _ he added as an afterthought. _I mean, what does Conan the Barbarian have that I don't have? And Rivers? He's a cue ball with a tan! _

"Oh for the love of god!" Rodney muttered aloud when he glanced at his watch. He grabbed a flashlight out of his pocket and illuminated the dial.

"What?" a nameless corporal asked.

"We've been sitting here over four hours!" Rodney yelled loudly.

"And your point?"

Rodney glanced around at the six set of eyes staring at him and realized for the first time that these guys could really kick his ass. "Ugh, nothing," he mumbled shoving the flashlight back in its pocket. "Just noticing how time flies."

"Please do so in quiet sir," the head marine sergeant practically ordered.

"Okay," Rodney grunted meekly. A second later the only noise that could be heard in the jumper was Rodney's stomach growling. "Anyone got any food?"

…**~…**

In a pinch, John Sheppard was impressed with Richard Woolsey's ability to baffle people with bullshit. The guy was a master at it. The big words and the diplomatic training did him well in this galaxy. It certainly impressed the locals.

Sheppard blinked his eyes in awe as he watched Woolsey shake hands with the man known as Sir Praetor, the wraith playing human that had spoofed them the past few months. The jackass that had attacked Atlantis, took our people hostage and ugh! _He was shaking his hand right now. Better him than me because I'd cold cock that asshole right into next week. _John exhaled slowly to rein it all in.

Somehow after a few hours of psycho-medical babble, Phillips, Hank and Woolsey had convinced these _wraithmuns _that, on the condition of letting their crewmen go, Atlantis would provide assistance with their fertility problem.

John Sheppard stood tall as the eleven missing crew walked out of the building and paraded slowly to the jumpers. He watched them all carefully, taking in every bump and bruise that adorned their skin. Some walked on their own, others were helped along. Only one looked like he was going to die and surprisingly it wasn't Tucker. Tucker, on the other hand, looked great. _Which is scary considering what they'd claim to have done to him, _Sheppard concluded as the boy sat down on the bench seat in the back of jumper three.

"Everyone accounted for?" Sheppard asked Ronon and Lorne who brought up the rear of the group.

"Yes, sir," Lorne reported. He watched as the group dispersed into the three awaiting jumpers.

"Alright then," Sheppard said crisply. He glanced back at the wraithmuns standing just a few feet away. "Let's get them home."

TBC


	34. Chapter 34

Final Chapter.

A week later.

"You're not taking this?"

John Sheppard held up an Athosian trinket that was sitting on the desk and dangled it in front of Divya Katdara face. He was taunting her, just a little bit. It was at his urging that she recuperate from her gunshot wound in the Hamptons. But watching Divya pack her things was making him regret it. He was going to miss her a lot more than he had realized.

"John Sheppard," Divya called him out. She walked to his side and took the item out of his hand. "No I am not taking this. In fact I'm not taking anything more than my bathing suit and my sandals. I plan to lie in a beach chair for the next five weeks and eat bon bons every day."

John locked eyes with her. She couldn't hide her desire in the darkness of her eyes and he didn't even try to hold back. _I love this woman, _he said wordlessly. "Just one swim suit?" he whispered breathlessly. "The red one or the purple string bikini?"

"I was thinking about just the black thong," she replied her voice thick and husky. She trailed her hand across the fly of his uniform pants. It didn't go unnoticed that his dick was as hard as a rock.

The pressure against him from her hand and the implication in her tone was all the invite he needed to lead her to the bed. He pushed Div's bag to the floor and yanked the radio from his ear. He didn't need to be interrupted anytime during the last twenty four hours that Divya would be on Atlantis. Sheppard had already made arrangements with Lorne and Rivers to hold down the fort while he was otherwise occupied.

…**~…**

"So what's the word?" Tucker Bryant prompted Dr. Hank Lawson and Dr. Rick Phillips.

The two doctors had just put him through a battery of tests, collected vials of blood and ran him through the scanner twice and now the two men were staring at the results and practically scratching their heads.

"Hello! Doctors!" Tucker waved at the two men. "Patient neglect."

"More like raging hormones," Phillips grunted. "Lots of them showed up on your scan."

"Oh, right," Tucker mumbled rolling his eyes. "Look, you guys can stare at your computers all you want. I have an appointment to get to with Mr. Woolsey."

"Wait, what?" Hank questioned with a perplexed expression on his face. He turned in his seat to look at the teenager.

"Mr. Woolsey wanted to talk to me before we left for the summer," Tucker said shrugging his shoulders. He glanced down at his watch. "My appointment is in ten minutes."

"Oh, well, good luck," Hank mumbled turning back to the computer.

"That's it?" Tucker asked jumping off the exam bed. "I endure hours of torture in the enemy camp, have gallons of an unknown substance pumped through my system and then allow you to run every test known to man and for what?"

"To wait until we figure out what they did to you," Phillips said rather brusquely.

"I thought you already knew…they said they cured me of the hemophilia," Tucker argued.

"That's what they said….but there is no cure on Earth," Phillips quipped.

"We're just trying to confirm it," Hank added trying to smooth it over with the kid.

"Okay then," Tucker said backing out of the lab. "I'll just be on my way."

The two doctors pretended not to watch the young man walk out of the room, but they were definitely paying attention. When Tucker was clear of the room, Phillips changed the screen shot on his monitor.

"When do you plan to tell him that it worked?" Phillips asked the chief medical officer.

"When I know for sure that it did," Hank replied flatly.

"How much more proof do you need?" Phillips asked. "Every test that we've run indicates his blood is normal and has naturally occurring clotting factors."

"Yeah, I know. It just … doesn't make sense," Hank said running his hand across his face.

"Yeah, ummm, you're talking about the wraith … the same wraith that you let drain the blood out of your friend to cure his incurable disease," Phillips reminded him.

"I know," Hank mumbled. "That still weirds me out too."

"Well, don't let that stop you from figuring out how to cure their infertility problem," Phillips chuckled.

…~…

His throat was dry. Dry as the Sahara desert. The palms of his hands were sweaty to the point of almost dripping. The contradiction of the two surprised him. _I've been held hostage and survived. Aliens stuck needles in my arms and drained all my blood out of my body and put it back. And I was scared during the whole thing … but not quite as scared as I am right now, _he gulped trying to swallow the lump that was stuck in his neck.

"I've heard that you'll be petitioning the court for an emancipated juvenile status," Mr. Woolsey stated as dryly as the pasty sensation on the back of Tucker Bryant's tongue.

"Ah hic," Tucker stammered as he choked on what little spit was in his mouth. "Yes sir," he finally managed to mutter. "It's just a procedural thing. I've lived alone for most of the past two years."

"I thought you lived with your father," Mr. Woolsey questioned the teenager with an unreadable face.

"He was around once in a while," Tucker informed him. "Just enough to tease me that we would have a normal father-son relationship and then he would leave me with the housekeeper or send me away to boarding school." The scowl on Tucker's face told the story of the emotion behind his words.

"Ah," Woolsey grunted deciding not to push the young man any farther. "And you've requested to return to Atlantis with Dr. Lawson in the fall."

"Yes."

"Wouldn't you rather spend your senior year of high school with kids your own age?"

"Honestly? No," Tucker replied flatly. "I've never had a peer group to _hang around with_ on Earth. I've been living the adult life and showing up as the family spokesperson for the past two years. I don't know what it's like to be a normal teenager, at least back home. When I'm here on Atlantis it's different. I can just be myself and there aren't any expectations of me."

"Excuse me?" Woolsey questioned. "There are expectations of you here. Being part of the Atlantis crew isn't all fun and games."

"Yes sir, there are expectations of me here. I'm to study and learn about life and other cultures. I get that and believe it or not, I embrace that," Tucker argued. "But there aren't any dollar signs hanging over my head here. My father or his relatives aren't here trying to buy my affections to pacify my attentions."

"I see," Mr. Woolsey replied nodding his head slowly. "And what do you plan to tell your friends that you've been doing the past few months?"

"Nothing," Tucker replied plainly.

"Nothing?" Woolsey questioned the young man in front of him. "Tales of being captured by an hostiles would make for some hot bragging rights."

Tucker tilted his head with a perplexed expression on his face. "Mr. Woolsey, have you ever been to the Hamptons?"

"No."

"Bragging rights in the Hamptons includes how big of house you live in, or what kind of car you drive or how many helicopters can land on your front lawn in one day. Nobody there would care that vampires captured me and drained all the blood out of my body."

"Ah, I see," Woolsey grunted. "Well, what do you think of those experiences?"

"Agh, I think it's a badge of honor … at least around here anyway," Tucker said flatly. "I'm not just some kid that lives on the base. I'm a team member now that can be counted on when the shit hits the fan." He smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders.

"Ugh, huh," Woolsey grunted not sure how to respond to the young man's description of being a hostage. "Well, your application will be evaluated by General O'Neil and Dr. Lawson will be informed on his decision."

"That's it?" Tucker questioned the older man. _Am I getting the run around here? _He contemplated a rebuttal and then decided to stow it instead.

"Yes," Mr. Woolsey replied dryly.

…**~…**

Tucker left Woolsey's office just as the gate sprang to life. He walked across the bridge past control and watched to see who was coming through. First he saw Teyla and a few Athosians and then …. _Holy Crap!! _His face lit up and he practically tripped over his feet as he ran to the stairs.

"Shanee!" he yelp as he ran down the grand staircase to the gateroom. "What are you doing here?"

"Teyla came to get me," she said shyly. "As a going away present."

"Teyla?" Tucker mumbled looking over at the brunette standing behind Shanee. "Thanks."

"I figured you deserved a little love before leaving on your trip," Teyla replied with a satisfied smile. "Just be safe, both of you."

…**~…**

The sheets formed knots around the tangle of arms and legs. The heat radiated from the mattress. A sheen of sweat glistened across bare skin and dripped loosely from a nose or a chin. The bodies moved in a synchronized motion, completing a dance of passion.

While the scene played out in many different rooms across the city, the reasons varied as widely as the participants. A frantic teenager expressing his feelings in a seasonal fling, a couple in a final farewell to Atlantis, a couple saying an emotional good bye, yet in the end the message of love was a common theme. Even in the not so traditional way.

Evan Lawson made his way through the mess hall and hovered over the buffet line until he decided that an apple was the only thing that interested him. He turned and scanned the half empty room looking for a seat. _And I found one right there, _he chuckled to himself as he strolled slowly to the table.

"Dr. McKay," Evan greeted Rodney as he slid into the chair on the opposite side of the table. "Where is everybody? It's like a ghost town around here?"

"Team two and three are off world," Rodney mumbled as he shoveled food into his mouth. "The royal couple is getting their freak on and your brother is in the lab with Phillips trying to solve the latest galaxy crisis."

"Ugh huh," Evan grunted nodding his head slowly. He took a bite of the fruit and crunched on it loudly as he chewed. "So after tomorrow, what do you want me to do?"

"Do? What do you mean what do I want to do? Go back to the Hamptons and get a sunburn," Rodney replied completely annoyed.

"Ah, I'm not going back to the Hamptons," Evan remarked. "Other than seeing my car and some hot women that aren't really interested in me, there isn't any reason for me to visit the island."

"You're staying here all summer?" Rodney guffawed, his jaw nearly hitting the floor.

"Yup," Evan said about through clenched teeth. He took another bite of the apple and crunched away at it again, knowing full well that it completely ticked Rodney off. He could see the look of dread in McKay's eye.

"Why?"

"Well, there isn't any reason for me to go now. With Teldy going, Hank doesn't need me and Divya will go back into frenemy mode once she is around her family. Basically I'll just be a third wheel."

"Huh," McKay grunted. "I know that feeling," he agreed sticking a forkful of green beans in his mouth. "We could work on that economic plan for M91-642."

"Ugh, you mean the one you nearly started a civil war over?" Evan questioned.

"I didn't nearly start a civil war over it," Rodney growled. "Those people just don't have a concept about basic currency."

"That's because their society is based on peace. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours," Evan argued. "Not buy this for some outrageous amount money and be in debit afterward."

"That's not what I was purposing!" McKay yelped as he continued to argue his point.

The quiet tone of the mess hall erupted into friendly banter between Rodney McKay and his arch nemesis. Secretly Evan Lawson smiled. Maybe Hank didn't need him anymore, but McKay did … if only to challenge him in ways that very few understood. _The Hamptons aint got nothing on Atlantis, _Evan thought as he egged McKay on.

Tomorrow Divya, Hank, Teldy and Tucker would leave for the summer and Evan would begin the next phase of his life. _On my space gig. _

The End.

A/N: Sorry about the ending … it's a little weak, but I had to wrap it up … I start a new job on Monday and my free-time is gone between that and school. Thanks for reading.


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